Dear Friends

Once again, our Christmas celebrations are overshadowed by the pandemic and hemmed in by restrictions of one kind or another. At least this year we can sing our carols, even if we have to do so behind our masks, and share the sacrament, even if it’s only in one kind.

Yet in the midst of so much uncertainty and anxiety it's more important than ever this year that we are able (and that we do) gather for worship (in person or online), for "sweet singing in the choir", and to remind ourselves of the extraordinary story at the heart of Christmas: the birth of Jesus, the One who was also named Emmanuel which means, God is with us.

Life is full of risks and even with all the precautions we are taking and exercising self-discipline as we should and must, there is no guarantee we can be entirely safe. Indeed, as the Gospels remind us Christ’s birth was itself beset by hazards and dangers: a holy but homeless family, a corrupt and cruel king; it was no idyll. But for love of us God risked all and at Christmas was born as one of us, that we might become one with him. Whatever happens that truth is what inspires us, it is the source of our joy and hope and invites us to be bearers of the Christ light to a dark and troubled world. 

So do join us for worship if you are able to, tune in online, if you cannot, and let us pray that the coming year may bring healing of body, mind and spirit to our broken hearts, our fractured communities and our wounded world.

With every blessing


 

The Very Revd Chris Dalliston
Dean of Peterborough

The photo shows part of The Angels are Coming by Luxmuralis, a sound and light show staged outside and inside the Cathedral in November 2021.