Merry and messy

advent

At Christmas we often go to great lengths to try to make everything perfect. Exactly the right present for auntie Flo, new lights on our houses just a bit better than the family down the street, special little extras at our Christmas dinner to make it better than last year’s, a perfectly shaped Christmas tree… and, of course, perfectly planned Christmas services. But we only need to look at the news to see that reality is not always like that. So many people are living with suffering of one kind or another. Problems both far away and closer to home, sometimes in our own lives, tell us that our world is often, well, messy.

This points us to something very important about the original Christmas story, the birth of Jesus. It, too, was not entirely neat and tidy. Mary and Joseph had a very difficult journey to Bethlehem. They probably walked, or rode a donkey as tradition says, about 90 miles, with Mary heavily pregnant. There was not a warm welcome from the people of Bethlehem, and, of course Mary had to have her baby where the animals were. To cap it all, they then had to get out of Bethlehem and escape to Egypt as refugees. That all sounds very messy to me.

Two lessons then… If we find ourselves running round at home, dashing to the shops, trying to get everything right, and feeling rushed and tired, we shouldn’t be too hard on ourselves. We’re allowed to not get it quite right, it’s absolutely OK to be messy, and who said that we always have to be happy – all the time?

Secondly, let’s take our cue from the Baby whose birth it is really all about. He could have chosen to be born in a luxurious palace or a bright shiny hospital. But he didn’t. He plunged straight into the chaotic world of human life, complete with its joys – and its problems. He set about trying to put it right, and that’s a challenge to all of us, to do likewise, to help lift each other’s burdens and clear up at least some of our world’s mess.

Have a happy, if messy, Christmas!

Fr Matthew (edited from this week’s Wednesday Word)

Comings and goings for Christmas

advent

Advent means “a coming” and, of course, we celebrate the coming of Jesus into our world. But it was not only Jesus who came. Mary and Joseph travelled from Nazareth, the shepherds came in from the surrounding country, and the Wise Men journeyed from goodness knows where! Later, when Jesus preached and healed they came from all over Israel and beyond, and for two thousand years millions of people have come to Jesus in a myriad of ways.
So, with Jesus it was always two-way – He moved on out and people came on in. Now it is us who must be doing the “going out” part for him. This Advent and Christmas we are making a special effort to reach out, particularly but not only, to our Catholic brothers and sisters who are “non-practicing” or “resting”, and to some of our local community. Last week Archbishop Stack encouraged us in these words: “The invitation, friendship and support of fellow Catholics are such important ways of accompanying these brothers and sisters of ours so that they may experience the communion and fellowship of the members of Christ’s Body.”
Over these two weekends we are distributing special Christmas cards giving the times of all Christmas services across the Northern Arch parishes of Cardiff: our own, St Philip Evans and St Teilo with Our Lady of Lourdes. We ask you to take a couple and simply give one to anyone who you think the Lord may be calling to Come Home for Christmas. If appropriate make a personal invitation – perhaps to come with yourself – to a Christmas Mass. Some may be reluctant to plunge straight into a Mass, so invite them to the Carol Service at St Brigid’s on Tuesday 20 December at 7pm.
Meanwhile, to get more information and background visit this special website
www.comehomeforchristmas.co.uk

Come home for Christmas

newsletter

Jesus is too good, too healing, too peace-giving to keep to ourselves. This Advent and Christmas we are going to make a new effort to reach out to our Catholic brothers and sisters who are “non-practicing” or “resting”, and to some of our local community in general. We will be distributing cards for you to give to your contacts who you think may be interested. We can give special priority to our 3 Churches Carol Service at St Brigid’s on 20 December. And, of course, we must try to reach all those who swell our congregations on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. There will be opportunities for follow-up straight after Christmas.

Meanwhile, visit this special website www.comehomeforchristmas.co.uk and read this message from Archbishop Stack to encourage us –

“Space exploration has taught us that re-entry is one of the most difficult and dangerous manoeuvre of all! Unless the returning space capsule is travelling at a slower speed and the correct angle, it is likely to burn up when re-entering the atmosphere of the earth. I hope that image is not too strong when we think about inviting non-practicing Catholics to re-enter the active life and worship of the Church.

Each one has a unique life to live and a deeply personal story. It is too hard for many to revisit the past. ‘Crossing the Threshold’ may be too big a step to take alone. That is why the invitation, friendship and support of fellow Catholics are such important ways of accompanying these brothers and sisters of ours so that they may experience the communion and fellowship of the members of Christ’s Body.

Amongst the many things we are called to do and to be in our parishes, this is surely the most important of all.

Most Rev George Stack, Archbishop of Cardiff