'Let the light of love shine in troubled times' - Shropshire's bishops speak of crisis at Christmas

Ahead of Christmas Day, bishops and religious leaders across the region have taken time to reflect on the last 12 months as they have been preparing their Christmas messages.

Across the Diocese of Lichfield, Hereford and Shrewsbury and the Methodist District of Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury, the messages have been about keeping calm in the frenzy of the festive season, remembering the story of Jesus Christ, sharing favourite poems about hope and peace and wishing for peace to come to those who need it most.

The Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury Rt. Rev. Mark Davies said that while the news was full of headlines carrying bleak news, there was still good news and hope out there, with faith and charity at the heart of society.

Christmas message from the Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury Rt. Rev. Mark Davies

"Headlines throughout the year have warned of shortfalls, deficits and even ‘black holes’ in the finances of our local authorities, national government and even our most valued charities, not least our local hospices. 

"If it seems society is running out of resources, then Christmas recalls us to the deepest resource on which our society has drawn for more than a millennium and a half. 

"The inexhaustible resource of faith and charity which has sustained our life together through every crisis and pressing need. 

"A faith and a charity which finds practical expression in generosity and good will (literally ‘willing the good’) which marks the celebration of Christ’s birth. 

"This has led us to recognise the stranger as a brother, a sister; to seek the resolution of human conflict and long inspired generous self-giving in our lives. 

"This deepest of all our resources is found in the silent night of Christ’s birth. A silence which many seek in our churches and cathedrals.

"It is the silence in which Christians pray and receive the Eucharist today. 

"A silence which is not a fearful void nor a wearisome emptiness, rather an openness of heart and mind to all the Lord has made known to us and desires to give us in Christ’s coming among us. 

"I am struck by a similar silence which falls over many hundreds gathered in Shrewsbury’s Quarry Park on Remembrance Sunday, a scene of silence repeated in all our communities. 

"Before the tragedy of war, it is silence alone that allows us to remember the enormity of human loss in every man and woman who gave their lives; and to open our hearts to pray for that peace which has proved beyond mere human capacity.  

"In the days before Advent, an unprecedented silence fell over the House of Commons following the passage of the first stage of the Assisted Dying Bill. 

"A silence respectful of differing convictions about the sanctity of human life and the safety of such legislation for the most vulnerable. 

"Yet, commentators noted, this was an uneasy silence prompted by what our representatives had just done in voting to remove a central Christian foundation of society, namely that in caring for the sick and the aged, “you shall not kill.”  

"A silence prompting still deeper reflection in the year ahead in the light of the Christian inheritance which has formed our society and which we may always be in danger of taking for granted.  

"In the gentle silence which uniquely falls over our country at Christmas we are called to recognise the light which shone for us on the first Christmas night and find anew the boundless hope which flows from the news of great joy that a Saviour has been born for us, who is Christ the Lord. 

"May this unfailing hope help shape a truly happy New Year for us all."

The Bishop of Shrewsbury, Rt. Rev. Sarah Bullock, spoke about how despite news of war, economic turmoil and revolutions, the spirit of goodwill was still clear for all to see and people could learn about selfless generosity.

Christmas Message from the Bishop of Shrewsbury, Rt. Rev. Sarah Bullock

Peace and Goodwill

"It’s the season of peace and goodwill, but you could be forgiven for thinking it’s in short supply. Perhaps it’s that you can get nearly everything on a supermarket shelf, or delivered to your door, but not goodwill.

"We’ve had floods, economic turmoil, political upheaval, news of revolution and in Syria, war in Israel / Gaza and Ukraine and trust in our institutions is low. The Church is no exception.

"It can be subtle and pernicious and it can shake us, but peace and goodwill are truly gifts that keep on giving. One bit of goodwill or kindness, is good not just for the recipient but the giver and, of course, peace and goodwill are not just for Christmas.

"Selfless generosity relies on us trusting that someone’s need is genuine and can take us to the point of giving up something that we would rather keep, because we see the need it can meet in someone else.

"That generosity is at the heart of the Christmas story in the gift of Jesus to us, as one of us, a human being, but from a heavenly home. That’s a gift of love and trust.

"The Christmas story is all about love and trust: it’s about how God puts trust in us, something I still find an amazing truth. 

"Even in just a small part of the Christmas story we see God’s love and trust lived out: God trusted the shepherds on a hillside in Bethlehem to be those to whom the angels appeared, announcing the birth of Jesus. 

"He trusted them? They were uneducated, unkempt, relied on only by their flock, but they saw, they were awed and they told anyone who would listen, the good news of great joy.

"An amazing feature of God’s plan is that there is no ‘qualification’ for hearing the news or carrying it to others. So let no one disqualify themselves!

"Good news has the capacity to break through misery and turmoil. When it is the greatest news ever reported: the greatest story ever told that has been heard every Christmas in almost every nation and in most quarters of the world, then let us trust this story and allow it to work its power in us. These really are good tidings of great joy.

"May I wish you all a Happy Christmas and invite you to come and put your trust in the story of stories this Christmas. Come to a church near you and join in, you’d be very welcome."

The Bishop of Hereford, Rt. Rev. Richard Jackson spoke fondly of his childhood memories of Christmas and how the day provided a change in routine and a chance for the family to come together in celebration.

Christmas Message from the Bishop of Hereford, Rt. Rev. Richard Jackson

"I fondly remember my childhood Christmases. 

"The Christmas carols may have been aural wallpaper then, and it was devoid of any spiritual element, but it was nonetheless joyous. 

"There was something wonderful about presents, decorations, gathered family, parties, feasting, the Queen’s message, and ropey old James Bond films as a shared experience. 

"Rather like the punchline of a joke, Christmas interrupted a predictable routine with colour and life. 

"The same emotions evoked driving around a corner back in November confronted by the first over the top set of house Christmas lights.  

"I know some people think they are tasteless. For me, the blingier the better. 

"Since I became a Christian, Christmas without Christ has become inconceivable. Joy is often more powerful when it takes us by surprise.  

"I am surprised by joy when my 11-month-old grandson waves at me on a Facetime call. 

"Shepherds on a hillside were surprised by joy as the angels sang. Mary and Joseph were filled with joy at their newborn son. 

"The joy of Christmas is that God’s eternal plan to restore broken humanity begins to be revealed in all its glory. 

"That is the extraordinary thing about joy. Unlike mere happiness, it transcends circumstances rather than responds to them. 

"The Apostle Paul talks about joy as a fruit of the Spirit, a gift that flows out of us when we find Christ for ourselves. Such joy is thus a great source of inner strength.  

"If someone is depressed or discouraged almost any obstacle or hardship can be enough to incapacitate them. 'A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones' says the writer of Proverbs.

"I hope that we can share our joy this year with those we know are going to feel lonely and isolated. Joy is to be shared, not hoarded. 

"There is so much joy to be had in the everyday celebrations of Christmas, but they can be signs of something altogether deeper. 

"Christians can and will celebrate amid conflict in the Holy Land, on the frontlines in Ukraine and in a newly liberated Syria. 

"Even brothers and sisters who are locked up for their faith will find it. I pray we will all find it this year, whatever our circumstances and anxieties."

The chair of the Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury Methodist District, Rev. Rachel Parkinson, spoke about the noise and pressures of life and how, even in the middle of argumentative voices and constant noise, there can be moments of calm and quiet.

Christmas message from the Chair of Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury Methodist District, Rev. Rachel Parkinson

"The Community Carols evening at Beckminster Methodist Church had many contributors, but there was no doubt who were the stars of the show. 

"The Wolverhampton Gateway Club, whose members are all adults with learning difficulties, sang “Mary’s Boy Child” with such infectious joy that even the most reserved of us sang along and waved our arms in the air. 

"The following evening, in a candlelit St Peter’s, I was entranced by the Ex Cathedra vocal ensemble singing unaccompanied, their 10 voices weaving around each other in close harmony carolling that left me spellbound. 

"Earlier the same week, Inclusive Carols at the White Hart Pub, organised by the Methodist Church and Wolverhampton LGBT+, was different again and featured a nativity in a shoebox that its 10 year old creator had liberally doused in glitter because 'Holy Stories need to sparkle.'

"This year, the Methodist Church’s Christmas theme comes from a line in a well known carol:  “Oh hush the noise, ye men of strife, and hear the angels sing!”  

"Modern life can be very noisy. There are pressures coming at us from all directions. Angry and argumentative voices; traffic noise; constant messaging; and the endless pressures of holding it all together, not least when many people are under severe economic strain.  

"We could all do with finding a way to “hush the noise” for awhile.  

"But that doesn’t necessarily mean escaping to a desert island. None of the carol services I’ve been to could be described as quiet, but I’ve found each one both energising and de-stressing. 

"That’s because it’s good for the soul to be amongst people listening to one another’s different voices and working together in joyful harmony, whether they’re professional singers or they struggle to hold a note.

"I believe this is human community as God intends it to be, and which Jesus came to show us. 

"At each carol event I’ve heard the angels sing God’s love song of peace to all people, and some of the angels had very human faces!

"It reminds me that this Summer, many “men of strife” were encouraging people across the UK onto the streets. 

"But with rare exception, their noisy calls to violence went unheeded in this area.

"We proved that differences of heritage, ethnicity or religion do not have to put us at odds with one another. 

"The angels’ song can be heard whenever people of good will work together for the common good. 

"As 2025 draws nearer, I hope it’s a year when we’ll all find opportunity to hush the noise and hear the angels sing."

The Bishop of Lichfield Rt. Rev. Dr Michael Iprgrave looked at the wartime slogan and popular modern message "Keep Calm and Carry On", and spoke about how the message of calm could apply to the birth of Jesus as well as to modern life.

Christmas message from the Bishop of Lichfield Rt. Rev. Dr Michael Ipgrave

Have a calm, bright and joyful Christmas

"‘Keep Calm and Carry On,’ says the wartime slogan that was in fact never actually deployed during the Second World War. It did evoke that era’s spirit of quiet and determined defiance and oddly, at the turn of this century, it became a popular slogan spawning innumerable versions for mugs, tea towels and even clothing.

"If there is a version of this that describes many people’s run up to Christmas, then from observation it is Keep Calm and Hurry On, as people dash from work to present-buying, social events and more practically, food shopping or visiting food banks, filling the car or negotiating public transport. 

"For some, engaging in or observing this activity seems satisfying at least superficially. For others it reveals the yawning emptiness or loneliness that so many feel at this time. 

"There appears to be an unspoken contest to see who can remain calmest and least flustered while simultaneously dealing with multiple requests or facing the reality of a solitary Christmas.

"That seems not to be the kind of expansive calm described in the carol Silent Night: ‘All is calm, all is bright, round yon virgin mother and child.’ 

"That calm seems to be full of stillness after the momentous events of childbirth as the new family ponder the future while simultaneously working out the present. For a time there are no choices and decisions to make: those are dictated by the needs of a newborn. 

"When such a birth has been foretold for centuries, announced by angels and eagerly shared by awe-struck shepherds, there is not just calm but also bright hope.

"This is the kind of hopeful, expectant calm that we too can access even in the midst of the frenzy. 

"It’s possible to stop and ponder how we still are impacted by the arrival of a single child 2000 years ago among the estimated 100 billion people who have been born in the past twenty centuries, even if that impact is only that we run ourselves ragged without thinking why.

"It doesn’t have to be like that: Jesus Christ, Saviour of the World was coming to us, born as a baby, bringing us good news of God. He sits quietly expectant for us behind the frenzy.

"Seize the day, have your moments of calm preparation and come and celebrate with bright hope and unbridled joy in a church near you."

The current Bishop of Dudley and acting Bishop of Worcester, Rt. Rev. Martin Gorick invoked the spirit of one of his favourite poems to talk about the challenges in modern society for many, as well as how that in a world which has danger also has hope.