Someone from my Church has encouraged me to explore the question ‘Why religion?’ in this letter from the pulpit. It came from a position of wanting to encourage people to discover the difference that faith in Christ can make, and becoming part of the Christian community. He was also concerned that the usual arguments against religion are out there. What should we say in response? He is right. It is easy to take a shot at religion. It is easy to borrow arguments from other people; religion is out of date; is full of hypocrisy; is the basis for conflict and war; has no basis in rational thinking. I sense that he was concerned for those who saw the shallowness of these arguments – that they would not feel isolated, that they would find some reassurance in a world of scepticism, and that they might find a space, where they can reflect more on the difference that faith can make. A space where believers, rather than sceptics generate a community that is filled with the conviction that things can change for the better. Where, whilst we accept that bad things happen, that evil is present in the world, we nevertheless refuse to lie down. It is not religion per se that is the problem. Those who long for power and have evil intent are the problem.
I prefer the word ‘faith’ rather than ‘religion’. Religion speaks of what people see on the outside – which is not always helpful. Faith speaks of what transforms us on the inside. At Christmas God creates a special space where, just for a moment, the world is hushed and people gather recognise how there are forces far greater than the human powers that surround them. There is a space where people look up at the familiar inky-blackness of the sky, punctured by stars and realise that they are living their lives on a far larger canvass than they had previously imagined. We call that space, ‘the manger’. Things were arguably worse back then than they are for us today. I live in Peterborough and serve you in Elton. However, there is no brutal Roman rule. We are not at risk of living through a campaign of genocide to achieve ethnic cleansing, the likes of which Herod was planning. Few of us are refugees, as Jesus and his family were, escaping to Egypt – although I hope that our country will have welcomed more refugees by Christmas. Despite all of these calamities, there is still hope. God invites people to journey with Him in following the example of the Christ-child. God offers people hope and the promise of change, and begins to fulfil it. Therefore, as Christmas passes and New Year arrives, can I encourage you to have faith?