The material world reveals God's glory

The following is from Rowan Williams' (the Archbishop of Canterbury) Christmas letter,

Perhaps the two images most of us will carry away from the last twelve months are those of the devastation caused by the tsunami just after last Christmas and by the hurricanes that devastated the southern states of America in the autumn. The natural world became a place of terror and disaster.

The question never quite goes away of why God made a world in which such tragedy is possible. But Christmas reminds us of the one thing we know for sure—and that is God's way of responding to suffering. He doesn't wave a magic wand, or descend briefly from the sky to clean things up.

He arrives on earth as a human being who will change things simply by the completeness of his love. Jesus is dedicated to the will of the one he calls Father, the divine source of his own divine life. Never for a moment does he put any obstacle in the way of that ultimate, total outpouring of love that is the wellspring of his own life. He gives himself to this transforming purpose in every moment, whatever it costs.

And the world changes—even the physical world: death is overcome and the material world reveals God's glory in its depths. So we are changed.

The full text of his letter is online here.

Also, as Irenic Thoughts is in the midst of sharing some quite beautiful artwork with you, it is probably only fair to also share the Cavalcade of Bad Nativities with its Kitschmas artwork.

Note:
Last night's sermon, Making Room for Christ is now online. Today's worship service is at 12 noon.

The January 2006 issue of The Olive Branch is also now online.