‘Merry’s miscellany’
The Vicar’s monthly letter for the Parish News
December 2025
As the nights draw in and our calendars fill up, Christmas can feel more frantic than festive.
Yet at the heart of this season lies a quiet, extraordinary truth: God chose to step into our world. Not with spectacle or status but with vulnerability, humility, and love.
The Incarnation, God becoming human in Jesus, is the eternal declaration that we are not alone and never forgotten. In the birth of Christ, peace and joy are no longer abstract ideas or seasonal slogans. They take on flesh.
Peace enters our story in the stillness of an overlooked stable. Joy breaks in with the arrival of a child whose light reaches even the most difficult places ..
The angels’ words still ring through the centuries: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased! (Luke 2:14).
This peace is the deep assurance that God is with us, not the absence of conflict. And this joy is more than momentary happiness; it is the steady hope that God’s love has drawn near and will never let us go.
As we celebrate this year, I wonder, can we pause long enough to let that peace settle into our hearts? And may we live out the joy of Christ by embodying his presence for others?
As Christmas approaches could we choose someone different to be present with, maybe a neighbour, a colleague, or someone who may feel overlooked? And could we offer them a deliberate act of kindness. A phone call, visit, a warm invitation, or even a quiet prayer to usher in the light of Christ.
Peace and joy comes to each of us in the person of Jesus. May we share them generously and in doing so, make room for the miracle of the Incarnation to unfold again in our community.
Merry Smith