A Christmas message by Dean of Gibraltar Canon Ian Tarrant

The Christmas angels sang to the shepherds: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men.’

The first Christmas card that I received this year included the word PEACE in its message. That word rings hollow this year, when we know that peace is lacking in many parts of our world. The bloodshed and destruction that we see in Ukraine, in Sudan, and in the Holy Land horrify us. Nothing can justify the wholesale slaughter of non-combatant women and children. And the sight of young men queuing up to kill other young men has nothing to commend it.

Of course, the core message of Christmas is that Jesus, the Son of God, was born into our world to bring spiritual peace between rebellious human beings and their loving Creator, by his death on the cross. For those who put their trust in him, there is a promise of forgiveness of sins, and the free gift of eternal life. No amount of physical violence can erase that spiritual message.

Nevertheless, alongside that hope of peace with God, the teaching and example of Jesus gave rise to a tradition and culture of peace which now permeate the thinking of many people today, even those who would not call themselves Christians.

The world into which Jesus was born was a world which knew no restraint in warfare or slavery. As Tim Rice said of the Pharaoh of Egypt: ‘No one had rights or a vote but the king’. Conquered peoples could be massacred or enslaved. Slaves could be used or abused as their owners saw fit. Political enemies could be assassinated. Unwanted babies exposed. Torture knew no limits. Nobody spoke of ‘human rights’ or ‘equality and diversity’ in those days.

In that world, Jesus taught that every single human being was valuable to God, and therefore should be valuable to us. Jesus encouraged his followers to love their enemies and pray for their persecutors. Jesus taught that every needy stranger should be treated as though they were Jesus himself.

Over the centuries Christians have struggled to apply those values in a fallen world, where evil seeks to dominate and extinguish virtue. Some Christians have embraced a pacifist ethic, speaking against violence in all circumstances, and rejecting any warfare outright.

A more nuanced approach has been the idea that one might condone a ‘just’ war. While Christian ethicists debate the finer points of the concept, essentially a ‘just’ war is one initiated not for retribution, not to grab land, but with a positive outcome in mind. A ‘just’ war is one where there is a reasonable chance of attaining that good outcome, and where the final benefit outweighs the human cost. In a ‘just’ war, there should be a clear distinction between civilians and fighters, with minimal harm to civilians, and fair treatment for prisoners of war.

The Geneva Conventions drawn up over the last 160 years embody many of these principles, though divorced from their Christian foundations. Torture, reprisals, hostage-taking and the forced displacement of populations are all forbidden. Health-care and the education of children in occupied territories are to be maintained.

Sadly many of the belligerents in modern conflicts ignore these Conventions. Whenever you hear enemies being dismissed as animals or as insects, you know that they are no longer being valued as human beings, and bad things will follow. But the time will come when the perpetrators will be judged, if not by fellow human beings, then by God.

When the fighters and resources are exhausted, war ends. Too often the initial problem remains, and has to be solved as a new peace is built. The more humane the war, the easier it is to build peace again. The more vicious the war, the more resentments remain to undermine the new order. We pray for those places at war today, that solutions will be found, and that peace will come.

Meanwhile, wherever we are, we can work for peace. Let us seek peace with God this Christmas, in our hearts. More than that, let us encourage one another by building peace with family members, neighbours and colleagues, in our homes, our streets and our places of work. Let us value our fellow human beings, by saying ‘good morning’ to people we do not know, by learning about people who are not like us, and by making friends with strangers.
‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men.’

May evil and violence not prevail. May we each have a happy and peace-building Christmas.