A message from the Rev’d Stephen Sutcliffe

Posted by Admin on 19 November 2020, 8:17 pm

The Rev’d Stephen Sutcliffe

Assistant Curate

2 St Faiths Rd

Cowes

PO31 7HH

Tel: 01983 652506

Email: steve.alan.sutcliffe@icloud.com

Hello everyone

As I write this piece for the newsletter I am comforted to know that you are currently reading it! So thank you for taking the time out to read my ramblings.

I’m hoping that as you read it, we are about to come out of the latest period of lockdown. Many of us will be feeling somewhat anxious, exhausted with all of the changes perhaps, but hopefully with a degree of relief that we are through this latest period. As I write this, news channels are full of the hope that we might have a vaccine to the Covid–19 virus that is 90% effective.

Again there’s that word, hope.

For so many people, Christmas is a time of hope, a time that perhaps we put a degree of pressure upon ourselves to ensure we feel positive. And if we don’t, then we might feel a sense of failure. That somehow we have got things wrong. Well this year is different. For so many people, if not all of us, this year Christmas is going to be quite different.

The Church of England, mindful of the stresses and strains of what has been an incredibly difficult year, has titled its Christmas campaign ‘Comfort and Joy.’ Perhaps recognising that this Christmas is going to feel very different to those Christmases we have enjoyed in the past. Mindful perhaps of the immense sense of loss that our country and our world has endured. Mindful perhaps of the many millions who have contracted the Covid-19 virus and are living with its after effects. But especially mindful of those who have lost loved ones in such vast numbers this year.

Christmas is a time for joy. It is a time for family, for friends, for love, for sharing and for reflecting. For me, Christmas is a time where I offer my thanks to God for giving us the gift of love. That ability to see the best in one another, to comfort one another when we are going through difficult times, for sharing with one another, for making sure that no one goes without and that no one is alone unless they wish to be. Christmas is a time when we pull together and remind ourselves of the bond that connects all people. The bond of love, that thread that connects all of humanity with the divine nature of God.

This year Christmas will be different. Many people have lost their jobs or have seen their hours at work cut. Money is tight for many people. Difficult spending decisions have had to be made. I’ve no doubt that at some point over the festive season you will hear the phrase ‘money doesn’t buy you happiness.’ Those of us fortunate to have children, grandchildren, young nephews or nieces might respond with yes I know, but try telling that to my young (insert name here…!) who wants this gadget or that toy or worse still both! But you know, in my experience, feeling loved is the best present we can ever offer. And that feeling of being loved is borne through happy memories, happy experiences, sharing time, offering comfort and spreading joy.

Christmas time is the time when we can stand shoulder to shoulder with those around us, our family and friends, our community and those from wider afield and pause. Just stop for a moment and reflect on the year that we have had. Pause, reflect and remind ourselves of the love that we have for one another, the love that others have for us too. The love that comes from God.

My hope is that over these next few weeks we will have the opportunity at some point to spend time with those we love, to share, to support, to comfort, to spread some joy. To embrace all that life has afforded us so far and press the restart button as we look ahead into the future with renewed passion to make a fresh start. Remember the past makes our present but we can change the future.

So to wrap up, my hope and indeed my prayer for us all is that this Christmas we will all get the opportunity to spread a little comfort and joy with those around us. Our loved ones, our friends and our communities, as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, God in human form. Who came to show us all the gift of love and from whom the gift of love flows.

May I wish you all a most blessed Christmas, and a New Year filled with hope, peace, comfort and joy.

Amen.

Rev’d Steve xxx