Press Releases
"Christmas is not about opting out of the real world" - Archbishop Neill's Christmas Message
In his annual Christmas message, the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr John Neill will issue a call for Christian generosity at home and overseas at this time of the year and insist that “Christmas is not about any opting out of the real world.�
Emphasising the ‘real world’ aspect of the nativity itself the Archbishop will say “the Christmas story itself is so familiar that we easily ignore those harsh features like a census imposed by an occupying power forcing even a pregnant mother to travel a long distance, or the cruel slaughter of babies by a despot clinging to his fading power, or the necessity for the Holy Family to flee to another land. It is the same world in which Jesus comes to us now as “God with us�. The New Testament puts it like this; “You know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.�
Noting that “For those in the depths of any disaster, natural, accidental or personal, God often seems very far away� he will add “How wonderful it could be if your giving and my giving allowed somebody to realise not only that others care, but even more that God is with them in their need.�
Concluding, the Archbishop will urge “Christmas is about more than nostalgia, it is about the real God being concerned about the real world. Generosity can make Christmas real for others this year!�
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The full text of the Archbishop’s Address follows:
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE 2005
From the Archbishop of Dublin, The Most Revd Dr John Neill
It was across the Christmas holiday last year that the full horrors of the Tsunami in Asia suddenly filled Television screens around the world. It was deeply disturbing for those enjoying Christmas peace to see that tragedy unfold and engulf countless people. Christmas is not about any opting out of the real world, but it is about God through Jesus Christ opting in, and in a costly way. For those in the depths of any disaster, natural, accidental or personal, God often seems very far away. Christmas shows us that this is not as God wants it to be. Jesus comes among us as Emmanuel - “God with us�.
The Christmas story itself is so familiar that we easily ignore those harsh features like a census imposed by an occupying power forcing even a pregnant mother to travel a long distance, or the cruel slaughter of babies by a despot clinging to his fading power, or the necessity for the Holy Family to flee to another land. In so many places, things have changed but little in over two thousand years. It is the same world in which Jesus comes to us now as “God with us�. The New Testament puts it like this; “You know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich�.
Christmas gifts are a sign of this same generosity and the desire of Jesus Christ to be with us. To share in Christmas involves sharing something of this generosity with those in special need in our own country and overseas. How wonderful it could be if your giving and my giving allowed somebody to realise not only that others care, but even more that God is with them in their need.
Christmas is about more than nostalgia, it is about the real God being concerned about the real world. Generosity can make Christmas real for others this year!
Further information from:
Mr Garrett Casey,
Diocesan Communications Officer,
Dublin and Glendalough,
Tel: +353 (0)1 6106447
Mob: + 353 (0)87 2356472