Here’s a wonderful affirmation of faith which would be suitable for use during the Christmas season. It was written by Nathan Nettleton, and posted on his website, Laughingbird.net.
Christmas Affirmation
We believe in God,
the creator and giver of life,
who brought all creation to birth,
who mothers us and fathers us,
protecting, nurturing,
and cherishing us.
the creator and giver of life,
who brought all creation to birth,
who mothers us and fathers us,
protecting, nurturing,
and cherishing us.
We believe in Jesus Christ:
God born among us as a fragile baby,
embodying both love and the need for love,
and calling us to rest in God
as trustingly as a tiny child.
God born among us as a fragile baby,
embodying both love and the need for love,
and calling us to rest in God
as trustingly as a tiny child.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
breathed into us at our birth,
always drawing us on to be born again,
encouraging, exhorting, comforting,
nourishing our growth
and inspiring our living.
breathed into us at our birth,
always drawing us on to be born again,
encouraging, exhorting, comforting,
nourishing our growth
and inspiring our living.
We believe in the reconciliation
of the world to God, through Christ.
Hunted at birth
and humiliated at death,
Christ entered our fearful darkness
so that we might enter his glorious light
and share the life of his resurrection.
of the world to God, through Christ.
Hunted at birth
and humiliated at death,
Christ entered our fearful darkness
so that we might enter his glorious light
and share the life of his resurrection.
And we believe that each new child
is a glimpse of the face of God,
a sign of the life to come,
and a call to live in peace
and celebrate living together.
is a glimpse of the face of God,
a sign of the life to come,
and a call to live in peace
and celebrate living together.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to God's people on earth.
Amen.
and peace to God's people on earth.
Amen.
— written by Nathan Nettleton, 1999, incorporating some lines from "Midwife of our lives" by Kathy Galloway published in Kathy Galloway (ed.) The Pattern of Our Days, Glasgow: Wild Goose Publications, 1996, p.138. Posted on Nettleton’s Laughingbird.net website.
For more worship resources for Advent and Christmas, see the indexes at the top right side of this blog, or click on Advent or Christmas in the list of “Labels” at the lower right side of the page.
