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I have a piece in today's Times on the secular festival that is Christmas, and the irrelevance of religious leaders' homilies. This is the gist of it:
This Christmas, only about 2.7 million people went to an Anglican church service. To put that figure in perspective, an estimated 3.5 million of us spent part of Christmas Day shopping online – not to mention the 84 people who filed their annual tax return online last Christmas Day.
...So although it’s an annual tradition for Christian leaders to issue a Christmas homily, one has to wonder why they still bother – because the metamorphosis of Christmas from religious to secular holiday is part of the same process that renders bishops and priests increasingly irrelevant. When the Archbishop of Canterbury speaks, for instance, his words no longer carry automatic weight because of the office he holds. We first choose whether or not we respect him, and then decide whether to pay attention.
...This has nothing to do with whether or not we share a religion. I may be a Jew, but I listen respectfully when the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, speaks. Not because of his religion, but because of his character and his behaviour. He has earned my respect. Similarly, when the Chief Rabbi speaks, many nonJews pay attention to his words because they admire him, irrespective of his religion.
The truth about Christmas is that whether one is Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu or any faith is no longer remotely relevant to its celebration. In a country where religions no longer provide an instinctive focus, that is surely all to the good.
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