Bishop Mary shares her Christmas message with us and BBC Radio Berkshire. She reflects on the message the angels shared with the world 'do not be afraid' - wherever you are this Christmas and however you are feeling, 'do not be afraid'.
Phil Mercer: Here is the Rt Revd Mary Gregory.
Bishop Mary: Good morning. I hope that in this run up to Christmas you're feeling merry and bright, full of the joy of the season, full of anticipation about all that it will bring. If you're not feeling like this, if your bells have lost their jingle and your inner light its twinkle, then what does Christmas mean for you?
In the Christmas Bible stories, the angels say the same four words four times over. ‘Do not be afraid’, they say. They say this precisely because someone is scared, because Mary is afraid of what carrying God's baby will mean for her, because Joseph is anxious about what the neighbours will say, because the shepherds are terrified by what the firework display of angels in the night sky might mean.
And yet, the angels say, ‘do not be afraid’. Why? When there's everything to fear. Because the angels say it is God who is on the move and God is good. Because the angels say the baby who is born is God and God is love.
So if you're feeling overwhelmed this morning or scared or troubled, do not be afraid. Christmas is when we remember that God is born as a baby for the people who are afraid, for people who feel like they're walking in darkness, for people who have lost their jingle and their sparkle. So do not be afraid.
Christmas tells us that God is on the move and God is good. And the baby who was born this Christmas is God with us, God to love us, to heal us and rescue us. Do not be afraid and Merry Christmas.
Phil: Merry Christmas to you, Bishop Mary. Thank you so much for that. Christmas for you, obviously, being a bishop, I expect it to be a crazy busy time. I mean, we bumped into each other because you were doing the sermon at our carol service, which was wonderful, by the way. You had me slightly worried when you started to go through supermarkets. And I was thinking, goodness, we could be in trouble here. you covered them all. So you got us out of trouble, which is fantastic.
Do you get a chance to rest at any point?
Bishop Mary: Yeah, I do. So I'm at Holy Trinity Bracknell on Christmas Day morning, and then I'm off for a few days. And my lovely mum is coming to stay with me, so I'll be doing the full Christmas dinner, and then we'll sleep, I should think. And then between Christmas and New Year, I'm catching up with lots of friends. And yeah, just slowing down a bit. So lots of time to rest.
Phil: Well, wonderful. Thank you so much for coming on and giving us a Christmas message today. The Bishop of Reading, Bishop Mary.
Read more Christmas messages.