Christmas is a good time to rethink our attitudes to children
by The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams
Posted: Monday, December 22, 2008, 9:20 (GMT)
Human beings, left to themselves, have imagined God in all sorts of shapes; but - although there were one or two instances, in Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt, of gods being pictured as boys - it took Christianity to introduce the world to the idea of God in the form of a baby: in the form of complete dependence and fragility, without power or control. If you stop to think about it, it is still shocking. And it is also deeply challenging.
God chose to show himself to us in a complete human life, telling us that every stage in human existence, from conception to maturity and even death, was in principle capable of telling us something about God. Although what we learn from Jesus Christ and what his life makes possible is unique, that life still means that we look differently at every other life. There is something in us that is capable of communicating what God has to say - the image of God in each of us, which is expressed in its perfection only in Jesus.
Hence the reverence which as Christians we ought to show to human beings in every condition, at every stage of existence. This is why we cannot regard unborn children as less than members of the human family, why those with disabilities or deprivations have no less claim upon us than anyone else, why we try to makes loving sense of human life even when it is near its end and we can hardly see any signs left of freedom or thought.
The comments below are readers' personal opinions and are in no way intended to reflect the editorial opinion of Christian Today.
Added: Tuesday, December 23, 2008, 18:34 (GMT)
why doesn't the Archbishop at Christmas time tell the world why Jesus the Son of God came to the earth. people today do not have a clue about the Christmas story and mans plight of knowing whether or not they are going to heaven or hell when they die unless they accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. This is most important thing the world needs to know and the time is fast approaching when the Lord Jesus Christ will return to judge the living and the dead.
Michael Whitehead, Rotherham
