You may have already taken down decorations, the sweets and food may already be consumed, presents broken and discarded, Christmas is over. However, Eastern Orthodox churches are just gearing up to celebrate and traditionally in the West we celebrated over 12 days, twelve days of feasting to follow 40 days of fasting, shortened in more… Continue reading Magi
Tag: Home For Christmas
Home from Home: Christmas, immigration and asylum
After the magi have visited Jesus, Matthew tells us that God warns them not to go back via Jerusalem because Herod’s intentions towards the child are hostile. Joseph is also warned in a dream to flee to Egypt because Herod is about to send his henchmen to kill Jesus. The family remain in Egypt until… Continue reading Home from Home: Christmas, immigration and asylum
Home for Christmas: Paper chains and broken chains
One of the things I love about Christmas is the way that we love to decorate our homes with tinsel, trees and lights. Like many of you, one of our favourite family traditions is an evening walk around to see the different light displays. Some people go to quite an effort such as the family… Continue reading Home for Christmas: Paper chains and broken chains
Home for Christmas: No room?
It’s been well established for some time now that Mary did not give birth to Jesus in a stable. The word translated “inn” by most of our versions of Luke 2 more likely refers to an upper guest right on. Jesus will have been born in the central living area where humans and animals mucked… Continue reading Home for Christmas: No room?
Driving home for Christmas … Make sure you know the way
This Christmas our theme for all of our Christmas outreach events has been Home For Christmas. Unsurprisingly our theme tune has been Chris Rea’s driving home for Christmas. Today we heard the sad news that the singer had died aged 74 after a short illness. One of my earlier articles connected the home theme to… Continue reading Driving home for Christmas … Make sure you know the way
In defence of carols
There’s a tendency to look down on Christmas carols. For some. Its simply that traditional hymns are not generally sung around the year, so why suddenly dedicate entire church services to them now. For others, it’s the belief that they are too sentimental, saccharine and lack the theology or poetry of other hymns and songs.… Continue reading In defence of carols
Home in flesh
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, hail the incarnate deity.” Very God, begotten not created. One of the things that people have consistently had trouble with through the ages has been the identity of Jesus. This goes right back to the early church when the Gospel message about him kept encountering pagan beliefs about the… Continue reading Home in flesh
Home and creation care
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” Those words from John 1 sum up the Incarnation. Christmas reminds us that God, in the person of Jesus Christ came to live among us, his creatures, as one of us (fully God and fully man) in his creation. I grew up hearing those words from Scripture… Continue reading Home and creation care
Making a home for a baby
One of the things we have picked up on in our Home For Christmas series is the way that Mary makes a home for Jesus, initially in her heart, head and indeed in her very body as she carries him in her womb. This has striking implications for us. As well as the reminder that… Continue reading Making a home for a baby
Home and grief
It’s now 3 years since we said goodbye to my mum and Sarah’s dad within the space of a few weeks. In both cases, there was an unexpectedness although we were aware of serious health conditions. In mum’s case, she had gone into hospital for surgery on a hiatus hernia but didn’t recover from the… Continue reading Home and grief
Faithroots 