'Let the light of love shine in troubled times' - West Midlands 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 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 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.

Christmas Message from the Bishop of Dudley & Acting Bishop of Worcester, Rt. Rev. Martin Gorick

I will light Candles this Christmas,

Candles of joy despite all the sadness,

Candles of hope where despair keeps watch,

Candles of courage for fears ever present,

Candles of peace for tempest-tossed days,

Candles of grace to ease heavy burdens,

Candles of love to inspire all my living,

Candles that burn all the year long.

"This poem was written by Howard Thurman, who knew so much about pain and injustice, about poverty and prejudice."

"Christmas can be a challenging time for many people, especially those grieving or bereaved, and those facing real poverty in this country today. 

"I am also so conscious of all those places in our world where people face danger, war, famine and disaster.  Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, is just one of those places.  

"Yet The poem also speaks of Hope, Joy and Courage. It speaks of lighting candles in dark places, bringing light and peace, love and kindness.

"As we pray for peace and for justice in our troubled world, I pray too for light and joy in our homes and in our hearts, as we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ our Lord."

The Bishop of Stafford, Rt. Rev. Matthew Parker, looked at the recent coup and liberation in Syria and how, even in the midst of discovering the horrors of Saydnaya prison, the human and Christmas spirit found a way to come through.

Christmas message from the Bishop of Stafford, Rt. Rev. Matthew Parker

Light shines in the darkness

"Saydnaya prison was one of first prisons to be liberated by rebels in Syria. 

"Saydnaya was a dreadful place, 'a human slaughterhouse'. 

"Thousands of prisoners of the Assad regime were kept there in cramped and windowless cells, many of which were secret and underground. 

"The dictator toppled; anxious relatives searched for their missing loved ones. Doors were forced open and prisoners led blinking into the light not quite believing they were free. 

"For these victims of the regime there will be a long road to recovery, but it is, for all the world, a powerful image of hope and liberation.

"As I heard about the horrors of Saydnaya and the setting free its captives, I remembered these verses in Matthew’s gospel, quoting the prophet Isaiah:

‘…. the people who sat in darkness, have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light has dawned.’

"In all sorts of ways and all across the world there are people sitting in the dark. 

"In our own country, it may be those who choose between paying the electricity bill and feeding their children. It our own families, it may be those who have just got that frightening diagnosis. 

"In our own lives, we may be sitting in the darkness of loss, addiction, guilt. 

"We may have become residents in the 'region and the shadow of death'.

"The Christmas story is about 'a great light' that begins in a stable in the little town of Bethlehem. 'Yet in thy dark streets shineth, the everlasting light. The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.'  

"God does not want his children to sit in the dark, fearful and lost. He sent his one and only Son Jesus to be the light of all people, 'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it'. 

"The child of Bethlehem becomes the man who battles the forces of darkness on a cross and defeats them because the darkness could not overcome the power of God’s love and life. 

"The prison door is flung open, the cell is filled with light. God beckons we who sit in darkness to come out into the light of a new day.

"I pray for the future peace and healing of Syria. I pray that you too may know the light of the Christ child this Christmas and that his light will flood your hearts."

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 Wolverhampton, Rt. Rev. Tim Wambunya, said the festive season was a time to reflect that babies do not wait for people, such as life doesn't wait for people to be ready.

Christmas message from the Bishop of Wolverhampton, Rt. Rev. Tim Wambunya

Babies don’t wait for us to be ready

"A baby arrives: lives change. The baby is no longer protected in its maternal home but lives and breathes among us. The parents’ focus moves from the distractions of life in a modern, western democratic country to this tiny helpless individual. Baby needs them.

"Babies don’t wait. They arrive when they are ready, sometimes without warning. They are no respecter of schedules, plans or circumstances. A bit like Christmas coming at the same time every year…we do our best to be ready for it.

"This year there are multiple forms of chaos or uncertainty around us: rain, locally. Drought in Somalia and Ethiopia. 

"Economic uncertainty nationally and internationally. regime change in Syria, war in Gaza and Ukraine. Neither in the church have we been immune from chaos. 

"But Christmas is still coming, and a church near you will still celebrate it with joy, offering a moment of calm in chaos and bright hope in darkness and uncertainty.

"Jesus arrived into the chaos of Bethlehem, to displaced parents, temporarily, but every displaced family clings to the notion it is temporary. 

"Instead of melting into the chaos, his arrival was announced by the angels with joy and met with the eagerness of the shepherds on the hillside. 

"Their eagerness was to spread the news of this remarkable arrival. Such was their enthusiasm that we are telling the story still drawing people to ‘Come and adore him’.

"Last year, 20 per cent more people came to church at Christmas than the previous year, bringing attendances near to pre-pandemic levels. So don’t be distracted by arrangements, news, chaos, uncertainty. 

"Let the news of the birth of a saviour distract and draw you whether you feel ready or not. He is a baby after all. Let him draw you into the hope and peace of this season of goodwill. 

"He came with the promise that he shows us what God is like. So why not join those who are drawn to the baby, drawn to the news of great joy or moved by the adoration of others for the baby born in a stable? 

"Babies. They don’t wait. Christmas is never cancelled. So join us in a church near you to celebrate it."