Cardinal Vincent Nichols, President of the Bishops’ Conference, has sent a short message as we approach Christmas to encourage all our digital followers.
The Cardinal reads a few verses of an Advent hymn that can be dated to 1854 and is sometimes called ‘Our Lady’s Expectation’, before inviting us to seek the face of Christ this Christmas.
“I might be getting on a bit, but I can still remember the sense of excitement as we approach Christmas. As a child, I’d say, ‘Mummy, is it Christmas yet?’ Well, this waiting is nearly at an end, and it’s beautifully expressed in these two verses of a traditional advent hymn.
“‘Like the dawning of the morning on the mountain’s golden heights, like the breaking of the moonbeams on the gloom of cloudy nights, like a secret told by angels getting known upon the earth, is the Mother’s expectation of Messiah’s speedy birth… Thou hast waited, Child of David, and thy waiting now is o’er. Thou has seen Him, Blessed Mother, and will see Him evermore. Oh, His human face and features, they were passing sweet to see: Thou beholdest then this moment; Mother, show them now to me.’
“With those words, I wish you a very happy Christmas. I hope you find time to go to the crib, to see the Saviour’s face, to see it held in front of us by his Blessed Mother. For He is our peace, and He is our joy, and He is the reason for me saying, wholeheartedly, a very happy Christmas to you all.”
