Rector’s Letter

As we stand at the beginning of new year, with Christmas tree lights being packed away but the Epiphany star still shining brightly, I want to wish all a blessed and peaceful New Year. The season of Epiphany, which we now celebrate, is all about revealing—the manifestation of Christ to the wider world, symbolised by the journey of the ‘Magi’ – the Wise Men. It is the moment we grasp the significance of what began quietly in a Bethlehem stable. This great revelation brings with it a powerful theme: Christian Joy. Over December, along with others in the Church of England, we explored the idea of ‘The Joy of Christmas.’ This reminded us that the birth of Jesus is not just a lovely historical event, but as the Christmas angels proclaimed “good news of great joy for all the people”. This joy that runs far deeper than the superficial cheer of the season. This joy is rooted in the simple truth: God has come into the mess of the world in the
Christ-child. He didn’t wait for us to clean up our act or for the world to become perfect. He came into the cold, the dirt, the uncertainty—the very reality of human life. This is the source of our deepest, most lasting joy—the knowledge that we are not abandoned, but that God is Emmanuel, (which means literally ‘God With Us’).

As we look ahead into the new year, this theme of joy becomes our spiritual signpost. We are not naive; we know that the year ahead will inevitably bring its challenges, its anxieties, and its heartaches. However, the Christian promise is not the absence of trouble, but the presence of Christ within it. This is the distinction that our Reader, Anne explored in her sermon at the beginning of Advent. She referred to the autobiography of C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy, where Lewis describes joy not as mere pleasure or happiness, but as an “inconsolable longing” that pointed him towards God. For Lewis, Joy was a profound, transformative experience, not just a superficial feeling you can conjure up at will. This is the kind of joy that sustains us—it is the confident assurance that our lives, and the life of our church, are securely held in God’s hands. It is the deep, underlying current of hope that persists even when the surface of life is choppy.

So, what might this Christian Joy mean for us in 2026? It is our strength: knowing Christ is with us gives us the strength to face whatever the world throws our way with courage, grace, and an unshakable hope. It is our witness: our joy is not meant to be hidden. It should overflow into our community, making us a welcoming, vibrant beacon of Christ’s light, just like the Epiphany star. It is our foundation: it reminds us that our primary task is to focus on the Christ who was born, revealed, and who calls us into his service.

May you and your loved ones know this profound, surprising, and sustaining Christian Joy as you journey through the year ahead. I look forward to walking this path with you, trusting in the God who has come to us and will never leave us.

With my prayers and very best wishes for this coming year.