Bishops reflect on tough times in their Christmas messages

Church leaders today released sombre Christmas messages that reflect a country in crisis and a world at war.

The cost of living crisis and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine dominate the thoughts of bishops from across the West Midlands.

The Bishop of Shrewsbury, Right Reverend Sarah Bullock, who says she will be thinking of those who will be “spending this Christmas without a roof over their heads or without a safe home, a warm bed, or a hot meal”. She talks of the “devastating impacts of conflict, violence, disease, and climate change” that have displaced people from their homes as well as the “many personal, social and economic pressures” in the UK.

The Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury Right Reverend Mark Davies discusses the “shadows” of Christmas, including the “financial and energy crises, industrial strife and continuing war in Europe”. But he says there is joy and comfort to be found in the love that God has.

The theme is also taken up by the Bishop of Lichfield, Right Reverend Dr Michael Ipgrave, says those struggling to eat or find heat this Christmas were utmost in his thoughts.

He praised the work of communities in his diocese, which includes Shropshire, who have acted to set up foodbanks or warm spaces and called on everyone to look out for those that are vulnerable.

He said: “The instinct to welcome people into our own space is deep within us as human beings, and perhaps it has felt more strongly than ever this year, when so many are experiencing cold and poverty, as fuel bills rise and the cost of living crisis bites.

“The welcome we give, or fail to give, to people who are cold, hungry, struggling with finances today says so much about our own society.

“I hope and pray that this year Christians, people of all faiths, and all of goodwill can find the best ever Christmas through giving a warm welcome to those who need it most.”

“I hope and pray that this year Christians, people of all faiths, and all of goodwill can find the best ever Christmas through giving a warm welcome to those who need it most.”

Read the bishops' Christmas messages in full below:

Warmth in the bleak midwinter

Bishop of Shrewsbury

The message from Right Reverend Sarah Bullock remembers those who are displaced or who are struggling.

“In recent days I travelled down to the south-east of England only to be rather unexpectedly overwhelmed by winter. Having left Shropshire in sunshine, it was something of a surprise to drive into a county covered in snow and ice – like stepping into Narnia from the warmth of the wardrobe.

“The weather conditions described in the first verse of Christina Rossetti’s well-known Christmas carol, ‘In the bleak midwinter’ have been a reality for many around our country and, even more so, around our world, over the past weeks.

“It says: ‘In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow, in the bleak midwinter, long ago.’

When we sing, hear or read these words, we cannot help but imagine those who will be spending this Christmas without a roof over their heads or without a safe home, a warm bed, or a hot meal.

“Every year people around the world face the devastating impacts of conflict, violence, disease, and climate change that force them to flee their homes and in our own country people are affected by many personal, social and economic pressures that can lead to displacement or a struggle to live a life that feels secure and positive. At the end of last year 59 million people around the world were internally displaced.

“We also remember that Jesus himself was born in a stable, nearly 100 miles away from his home town and amongst strangers. The Christmas story is one of displacement and challenge as well as the ’greatest story ever told’ of the birth of the Son of God, the hope of the world, come to earth to bless and to save.

“As we celebrate the birth of Jesus this Christmas time let us also remember and act upon the last verse of Christina Rossetti’s famous carol: ‘What can I give Him, poor as I am? If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; if I were a Wise Man, I would do my part; yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.’

“God, who has given us the greatest gift in his son, Jesus, also calls us to give him our hearts and to give from our hearts to love and serve those who are in need in any way, whether in this country or around the world.

“May you know the love and blessing of God this Christmas, and may we all be a blessing as we share that love with others.”

Forgive the religious stuff, but I am a Bishop

Bishop of Hereford

The Right Reverend Richard Jackson makes no excuse for talking about ‘religious stuff’ in his message.

“Anthony Flew was a pioneer of modern atheism. At the turn of the millennium he changed his mind, recognising that the evidence he searched for actually exists. He considered the evidence of God was much better than for not.

“The Old Testament Psalm, convinced of this evidence says, 'the heavens declare the glory of God'. But this only gets us so far. If we accept there is a first cause, how could he/it be known if he was behind and therefore bigger than everything.

“We live in a galaxy of several billion stars. It takes light travelling at 186,000 miles per second 2.5 million years to get to the nearest galaxy and there are billions of galaxies in the universe. This knowledge is too vast to do much with at a personal, practical level. It’s as likely to leave us fearful as fulfilled. God would need to make himself much smaller for us to have any hope of understanding.

“Christians believe that is what He did 2,000 years ago. This seems a very risky mode of revealing himself. Its risks us not recognising him, nor receiving him, or of allowing this event to simply pass us by.

“There are many reasons this might be. I was an atheist myself once. All of us look at the world through particular spectacles which allow us to filter out unwelcome information that doesn’t fit our world view. Some people approach the world through the lenses that science is all you need to explain it, and there’s nothing else. But a kiss may be the touching of lips with the mutual exchange of bugs and saliva but somehow that doesn’t quite get to the heart of romance!

“For some the sheer business of life or the availability of near constant distraction, dulls the deeper questioning that reflection on life provokes.

“But the Christmas message invites us to ponder this. The God of inconceivable awe has chosen to reveal himself in a package we can get just our minds around. Christians believe this reveals God is personal not an impersonal first cause, and offers a relationship that connects us to our true identity, love, security, significance, forgiveness and hope.

“Forgive the religious stuff, but I am a Bishop and this is what I believe is at the centre of our Christmas celebrations. In between the tinsel, turkey and ropey telly, I hope you would encounter something of that for yourself.

“A very happy Christmas to everyone.”

Christmas brings hope to every chapter of our history

Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury

Christmas brings us hope, says Right Reverend Mark Davies.

“Christmas has been a holiday in England for more than a thousand years. This holiday remains the one still-point in our year, bringing together families and communities and calling us to remember those most isolated and vulnerable.

“A recent national census points to a growing minority who no longer share any religious conviction, while those who declare themselves Christians have become less than half the population. Yet Christmas remains our shared holiday, recalling the foundation on which our national life has been built. The Coronation next year, with prayers and ceremonies going back more than a millennium, will also celebrate this foundation amid the many challenges of our time.

“Christmas has brought hope to every chapter of our history, especially the darkest. It is not without significance that the celebration of Christmas begins during the hours of night. For hope came into this world during those darkest hours in a child born for us, a saviour given to us who is Christ the Lord.

“This Christmas does not lack its shadows, with financial and energy crises, industrial strife and continuing war in Europe. Yet, the celebration of Christmas is not dependent on favourable circumstances; its joy is found by those who, like the poor shepherds, are awake and attentive in the silence of the night; and like the Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph in their sudden state of destitution, who share a trust which nothing can take away. In Saint John’s words that echo each Christmas, ‘We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us’ and ‘We are able to love because He loved us first’.

“In Shrewsbury, as in every place in our land, we are reminded at Christmas of the foundation on which our country was built, the foundation which has withstood all the crises of time. Whatever the circumstances in which you celebrate this shared holiday, may I wish you a truly happy Christmas and a blessed New Year."

Giving a warm welcome to those who need it most

Bishop of Lichfield

Right Reverend Michael Ipgrave speaks of the need for us all to welcome people.

“Over this autumn and winter, in churches, in places belonging to other faiths, in libraries, fire stations and other community buildings, people are being invited to come in from the cold to enter a warm, heated space, where they can meet with one another and enjoy conversation.

“The instinct to welcome people into our own space is deep within us as human beings, and perhaps it has felt more strongly than ever this year, when so many are experiencing cold and poverty, as fuel bills rise and the cost of living crisis bites. What has all this to do with Christmas, you might ask. In a word: everything. For Christians, this great festival is a celebration of the wondrous story of our God coming among us to share our life, with all its challenges and hardships.

“The gospels tell us he met a mixed reception. Jesus was welcomed by some, by poor shepherds from Bethlehem and by learned scholars from the East. But John also says that ‘he came to his own, and his own did not receive him’.

“The welcome, or lack of welcome, that different people gave to this little God who came to visit our cold, dark and needy world says so much about the society of Jesus’ time.

“And the welcome we give, or fail to give, to people who are cold, hungry, struggling with finances today says so much about our own society.

“I hope and pray that this year Christians, people of all faiths, and all of goodwill can find the best ever Christmas through giving a warm welcome to those who need it most.”

Bringing hope, joy and comfort to those who are struggling

Bishop of Wolverhampton

Right Reverend Clive Gregory speaks of the hardship of Mary and how it relates to today.

“After two Christmases overshadowed by the experience of, and the threat of, Covid, this year the challenge, for so many of us, is the cost of living crisis.

“Just managing to keep sufficiently warm, well fed and sheltered this Christmas is a challenge for so many of our citizens.

“At first sight it might seem that there is no connection between the struggles of so many in the present moment and the birth of a child in miraculous circumstances in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago.

“But we would do well to remember that, stripped of its festive wrappings, the Christmas story is one of struggle and hardship and anxiety.

“Mary, about to give birth, having to undertake a long and arduous journey.

“And when her time came, no opportunity to call the midwife, not even a place of comfort for her to give birth. Imagine her feelings of vulnerability, anxiety and fear.

“Imagine Joseph’s concern for her, and for the baby to be born in such circumstances.

“Into this gritty human drama come three elements that turn the family’s darkly challenging circumstances into an occasion of joy and wonder.

“The first is the hospitality offered to Mary and Joseph. It may only have been a stable but it was a roof over their heads and a place of safety. The second is the comfort of strangers . What a boost to their morale it must have been when the shepherds appeared, and then the wise men, not to mention the supportive presence of the animals. They were alone no longer and others had made such sacrifices to be with them!

“The third is the generosity shown to them, symbolised by the gifts of the wise men.

“The elements that transformed the first Christmas will be the same ones that bring some hope, some joy, some comfort to many who are really struggling this winter.

“Churches and other faith communities and charities are providing warm spaces, places of hospitality which are warmed further by the comfort of human kindness.

“Generosity continues to stock the foodbanks on which record numbers of people depend. We all have the opportunity to be part of an unexpectedly joyful Christmas story for some of our most vulnerable fellow citizens, through the donations we make, the time we volunteer, the kindness we spread.”

Celebrating the greatest gift of all

Bishop of Dudley

Right Reverend Martin Gorick says people should remember the love of Jesus is real wherever people are.

“It’s jolly cold as I write this but I’m not sure that we’ll be having a white Christmas!

“Many people across Dudley are struggling with the cost of living crisis, feeling the cold, but afraid to turn up the heating.

“It will be a bleak mid-winter for many this Christmas, even as our foodbanks, warms spaces and other fabulous volunteer groups do all they can to bring food, and warmth and friendship to all who are in need.

“Many charities are facing their own cost of giving crisis, as needs go up but giving goes down. Everyone is feeling the squeeze.

“At Christmas, in churches up and down the land, we celebrate God’s gift of himself to us in Jesus. I hope you’ll find your way to a church service this year.

“Born in Bethlehem. Known as Emmanuel, or God with us. The cost of giving for Jesus was great. Born in a stable, far from his home, finally rejected, misunderstood and put to death on a cross. The cost of giving for Jesus was total.

“This is who we celebrate at Christmas. Not a far-off God, but God with us, God in our midst. In church or at work, at school or wherever we are. Jesus is real, and Jesus brings God’s love. Costing nothing, but worth everything. The greatest gift of all.

“Snow or no snow… I wish you a Happy Christmas!”

The greatest power of all is love

Bishop of Worcester

Right Reverend Dr John Inge speaks of power – from malign power to the greatest power being love.

“I’ve got power on my mind at the moment, for a number of reasons.

“The recent cold spell has meant the power we need to heat our homes has been in the news, as has the worry of paying for it.

“Across the globe many people don’t have that power; I think particularly of Ukraine, where people are suffering in much colder temperatures than we have experienced here. And then there’s the power of President Putin who caused all the difficulties, and other malign leaders. They want to throw their power around and inflict their will on others, causing immense suffering as they do so.

“When we think of power, we tend to think of such world leaders who force their power on others, sometimes by violence.

“But actually, the greatest power in the universe, the ultimate power, is not violence but love.

“At Christmas, we see the truth of that revealed once again when we celebrate the birth of Jesus. God came to us as a vulnerable child to show us the depths of his love.

“It is by love that we shall be saved, the love of Jesus, not by the power of any world leader, good or evil, or any power of our own.

“My hope and prayer for you this Christmas is that you will be embraced by that love, the greatest power in all creation, and that you’ll be given the will and the means to share that love in your life.