Whatever situation you are in, we are here for you through our local presence and national resources.We know this is a difficult time for everyone. We hope that the resources below can help bring you God's comfort and peace.Why not pray this short prayer with thousands others across the world?Keep us, good Lord, under the shadow of your mercy.Sustain and support the anxious, be with those who care for the sick,and lift up all who are brought low;that we may find comfort knowing that nothing can separate us from your love.In Christ Jesus our Lord.Amen
My English teacher at school seemed to have eyes in the back of her head. She always saw what I was up to.Every New Year’s Day I acquire the same skill.I look backwards as well as forwards. I remember what has gone, as well as looking forward to what will be.This year, more than most, I look back with sadness at the hurts and challenges of 2020, but with great hope that 2021 might be different. And I do it with the God who, in Christ, gives light to those who dwell in darkness, even those in the shadow of death. God’s eyes and heart behold the hopes and fears of yesterday, today and tomorrow.Christ is always the light in the darkness. In him we make sense of our place in the journey of the passing years. He holds out to us a lantern, lighting our path through whatever lies ahead.
by Archbishop Justin Welby A light amidst the difficulties of this year has been the way people have cared for each other with generosity and courage. Cynicism about community has often been overwhelmed by love for neighbour.It has been stressful and anxious, but we have not shut ourselves off from each other. There have been countless wonderful acts of kindness and care, often sacrificial ones.We’ve seen these acts of goodness in health and in care, we’ve seen them in the community and in our neighbourhoods. Most often they have come not from power or position but from love and vulnerability.That’s exactly the sort of love that we celebrate at Christmas. Love that gets its hands dirty. Love that is open and generous. Love that, without great ceremony, makes a difference.May we find that love, God’s love in Jesus Christ, this Christmas. May we share that love, God’s love in us, this Christmas. And as we receive, and as we give, may we know the comfort and the joy that is God’s gift to us. Justin Welby is The Archbishop of Canterbury.
