13 - 20 Dec 2009

At our Christmas Carol Service on 9 December, I asked three people ‘What are you looking forward to at Christmas?’ and ‘What does Christmas mean to you?’ This is one reply:

“Christmas is a time of celebration and optimism. The Christmas messages reinforce ... the notion of ‘goodwill to all people’. It is a time for reflection – happy memories of a child’s view of Christmas in the past.... But I am acutely aware that for my best friend from school, Christmas is not going to be a happy time as the anniversary approaches of his eldest son’s death... All I can offer is some sense of understanding their grief... Christmas ought to ... emphasise the sense of being together in a deeply spiritual sense.”

Nick Tyldesley (Chaplaincy Pastoral Assistant; Quaker; Consultant for Teaching and Learning, Bolton Metro Children’s Services).

You can read the other replies at www.bolton.ac.uk/Chaplaincy/Events/Past/CarolService2009.

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