A Christmas Message from Dean Frances

‘The central part of the story did not come with jazzy lights and over-consumption. It came quietly: a young woman, a newborn baby, a small village under foreign occupation – and most of the world had no idea that anything important had happened at all.’

The Very Reverend Frances Burberry, Dean of the Diocese of Edinburgh, recently visited the Song School at St Mary’s Cathedral to reflect on the message of Christmas.

Surrounded by beautiful murals by Phoebe Anna Traquair, Dean Frances explored how loud and busy Christmas can be, but that its centre is in quietness; that the real gift is not to be found under the tree, but in ‘Emmanuel – God with us all, forever.’

The full transcript of the video is below.

A few weeks ago, I spent some hectic days in London with family. And if you’ve ever been there in the run up to Christmas, you’ll know what it’s like – iconic lights, busy shops, people rushing in every direction.

It’s loud, colourful, and a bit overwhelming.

There is also something loud, colourful, and more than a bit overwhelming about how Saint Luke recounts all that was involved in the first Christmas.

The central part of the story, though, did not come with jazzy lights and over-consumption. It came quietly: a young woman, a newborn baby, a small village under foreign occupation – and most of the world had no idea that anything important had happened at all.

God didn’t come into the world in power, but in vulnerability needing protection and security.

Not in a palace, but in a place where animals were kept.

And in that, God shows us that holiness often turns up in ordinary places, and that hope is often born where we least expect it.

The first people to hear the good news weren’t kings or important people, but shepherds – ordinary folk, just doing their jobs.

They remind us that this story is for everyone, and that no one is too overlooked to be part of God’s story.

At Christmas, we’re reminded that God isn’t distant. God is with us – in the good times and the hard times, when things make sense and when they don’t, in light and in darkness.

So whether you’re spending Christmas on your own or surrounded by others, my prayer is that we’ll all make a bit of room – room in our hearts for peace, room in our lives for kindness, and room in our world for love.

Because the greatest gift of Christmas isn’t under the tree.  It’s the love born in Bethlehem – Emmanuel: God with us all, for ever.