Yes, we are familiar with the angels and the shepherds and the birth of the baby in the outhouse of an inn in Bethlehem, and subsequently with the visit of the wise men - the details of which are to be found in the Gospels of Luke and Matthew.
29 December 2003
Our telling of the Christmas story is diminished because we focus almost entirely on those characters in the unfolding drama who seem to respond with devotion and obedience: an obedient Mary, an acquiescent Joseph, unruly, but nonetheless responsive herdsmen, perceptive philosophers who enter on bended knee.
28 December 2003
There is something to be afraid of in the renewal of a world: I may not welcome being reconstructed or interrupted.
26 December 2003
Salaam and grace in the name of our Lord and blessed Christmas Eve greetings to you from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and St George's Cathedral in Jerusalem.
26 December 2003
Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold joined 32 other Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders in announcing a new collaborative effort to mobilize broad public support in the pursuit of peace in the Middle East.
23 December 2003
With hundreds of walkers expected to take part in the annual Boxing Day pilgrimage from Ripon Cathedral to Fountains Abbey, the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Revd John Richard Packer, will use this year's occasion to pledge the church's support for rural concerns.
23 December 2003
For nearly three and a half years Christians, Muslims and Jews in the Middle East have lived in fear and anxiety, with the stark reality that their lives are saturated by the hostilities and violence in their region.
18 December 2003
A call for drinks companies to spend as much money on educating people about sensible drinking as they do on persuading people to drink alcohol at Christmas, has been made by the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Christopher Herbert.
17 December 2003
A crying newborn child is at the centre of the Christian meaning of Christmas. Born in a stable ‘because there was no room in the Inn’ to parents who went unnoticed in a crowded city, surrounded by dirt and deprivation far removed from a regal atmosphere the Prince of Peace, the son of God, came into this world as a symbol of poverty.
15 December 2003
The Archbishop of Wales fund for children is set for a new beginning this Christmas. Established two years ago in the wake of the Children's Society's decision to withdraw from all activity in Wales, the first two years of the fund's life have been taken up with trying to support existing projects and in cooperating with the National Assembly in tackling the vacuum left by the Children's Society's much criticised decision.
13 December 2003