Bishop Vincent Long's Christmas Message 2023

Bishop Vincent's Christmas Message for 2023

Dear brothers and sisters,

“Behold, I am doing a new thing”.

These words
of the prophet Isaiah have provided the inspiration
for us to undertake the historic journey of synodality
that culminated in our first Diocesan Synod. We
have been emboldened to chart a new way forward
for the local Church in Western Sydney and the
Blue Mountains. Galvanised by the spirit of Jesus
that calls us to greater communion, participation
and mission, we have been enriched rather than
torn apart by our differences. Though the road
towards a new horizon is full of challenges, we have
moved decisively towards a model of Church that is
rooted in the Trinitarian paradigm of deep mutuality,
solidarity and dynamism. This is the Church united
to serve that Pope Francis dreams about.

Nowhere else is this summons towards newness
more radical and crystal clear than the Incarnation.
Christmas is the venue for possibility. Christmas is
the in-breaking of the cosmic kingdom of justice,
love and peace. In Christ, God has come to make
all things new. In Him, the alternative universe of
compassion, equality and fraternity to the unjust,
corrupt and unsustainable status quo is indeed
possible. One can begin to dare to live again and
flourish. Humanity is ushered to a new level.

Christmas opens us to the dawn of this new era
of God’s justice, love and compassion in Christ.
The imperial culture of domination, exclusion
and consumption can no longer hold sway. The
trickle-down economy that favours the rich and
disadvantages the poor can no longer be the only
viable option.

Christmas calls us to place the care of the vulnerable
and the stewardship of all God’s creation at
the centre of human endeavour. A new ethic of
communion not just among humans, but with all life
forms must guide our way of life.

Christmas offers us the opportunity to join the
divine project of reconciling all in Christ. For with
the Incarnation, God has reset the cycle of human
behaviour. Jesus did not follow the script of the
empire. He came as a poor and humble servan t
in order to minister at the thresholds of human
vulnerability. He rejected violence, demonisation and
scapegoating. We no longer need to use violence in
order to counter violence; or resort to scapegoating
mechanisms to drive out opponents. God in Christ
enables us to build a new future with the very people
whom we regard as outsiders and enemies.

Let us commit ourselves to the task of building a
new future at home and abroad. As believers, we
cannot remain indifferent to the issues that impact
the lives of our brothers and sisters, whether it
is the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians,
the war in Ukraine, the ecological crisis, or the
reconciliation with our Indigenous brothers and sisters in the aftermath of
the Referendum.

The birth of Jesus signals God’s alignment with
those who are at the edges of society. Let us pattern
our lives on the self-emptying God. Let us learn to
abandon our default position of self-interest and
mutual exclusion that leads to an unsustainable
future. Let us show to others the alternative future
that is inspired and guided by the vision of the
God of vulnerability and radical communion.

This
Christmas, as we contemplate the Christ child in the
manger, let us commit ourselves to pray and work
for justice in all its manifestations so that God’s reign
will come in our world.

Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv
Bishop of Parramatta