A Tapered Down Christmas Service

Philip Wright

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be a mix of church services. For example, Saint Martin’s Parish will be convening its service at the Swift Hall in Belize City to accommodate one hundred and fifty persons.  Elsewhere, within the Anglican Diocese in Belize, there will be both virtual and in-person congregations as churchgoers will celebrate the birth of Christ over the weekend.

Bishop Philip Wright, Anglican Diocese of Belize

“The COVID-19 reality has forced us to trim down everything. But yes, people will be gathering as of tonight and tomorrow and Sunday; it is one of those unique years where you get back to back to back. And I believe this message of hope and so on will also be a part of the gatherings all over the country and certainly all over the world. I will speak specifically to Saint John’s Cathedral, which might be the familiar one for many. They will have their midnight service – well it is not midnight anymore, but their Christmas Eve service – at eight this evening and then tomorrow’s Christmas day service at nine a.m. And then on Sunday, Boxing Day, there will be regularly six-thirty and eight-thirty a.m. And if I may share with you this final quote as part of my own Christmas message and I thought maybe it is just a nice way to round it off. The core message of the Christmas season is really a simple one. We are called to love, value and respect the other who also bears the image of the incarnate God in the same way we do. The command to love does not come with conditions. The commitment to care does not require we first determine if the person qualifies by our standards or belongs to our tribal construct. The commission to share this good news and make the world a better place has no exceptions, none whatsoever. We are equal in God’s eyes and that my sisters and brothers is non-negotiable.”