The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, will tomorrow give his Christmas sermon, and in it he says some excellent stuff about the frailty of human ‘kingdoms’, the importance of small gestures and the current economic crisis. Here are some snippets:
“The gospel tells us something hard to hear – that there is not going to be a single charismatic leader or a dedicated political campaign or a war to end all wars that will bring the golden age.
“It tells us that history will end when God decides, not when we think we have sorted all our problems out; that we cannot turn the kingdoms of this world into the kingdom of God and his anointed; that we cannot reverse what has happened and restore a golden age.”
He goes on:
“What can be done to show [God's] glory? So often the answer to this lies in the small and local gestures, the unique difference made in some particular corner of the world.
“In the months ahead it will mean in our own country asking repeatedly what is asked of us locally to care for those who bear the heaviest burdens in the wake of our economic crisis – without waiting for the magical solution, let alone the return of the good times.”
I got this from the BBC website, here, but I expect the sermon will soon be published in full on the Archbishop’s website.
Merry Christmas!
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