I count myself fortunate to have lived almost all of my life in countries where the culture and attitudes have been shaped by Judeo/Christian values. The assertion that compassion is good and noble and not a sign of weakness is important to me.

A whole range of values have their roots in the Old Testament and are further expressed in the Gospels. One such, love of God, neighbour and self, has profoundly shaped our society and remains key to guiding my life and self-understanding .

Christmas can be a very tough time for some but I am glad that for many, well beyond the ranks of church-goers, it is a celebration of being together; of generosity, family, friends, and enjoyment.

I have already been wished a ‘Happy Christmas’ by various local Muslims, one of them a worker in our supermarket. An old Buddhist friend from Bangkok sent a Christmas message; a Hindu from India too; as have numerous others from all sorts of places, be they agnostic, atheist or whatever.

Respect for all people, not because of any personal merits, attitudes or status, flows from the belief that we are all created in the likeness of God.

This heartening and strengthening assertion does all seem to come back more fully into focus at this special season. 

Happy Christmas.

Last Sunday I sat on the sofa, glass in hand, at my younger daughter’s house and watched as my two English grandchildren decorated the Christmas tree.

It took me back to a time when I was their age and our local vicar, a good man, the Reverend Carl Tanner, asked me if I would put a Christmas tree in the church at Mount Peel, a decorated tree. Of course I did as he had asked.

There is no electricity in the Church of the Holy Innocents at Mt Peel so there were no lights on the tree but I did my best with the decorations.

On the day of the Service the tree had been transformed with more and better decorations than those I had used. The vicar had been to work. There was a wonderful star and yards of tinsel. The tree glowed in the light of the paraffin (kerosine in New Zealand) lamps and the candles.

In his sermon the vicar told us that the Christmas tree represents the universe. The tinsel, he said, was the Milky Way, (had there been lights they would represent the stars,) the coloured balls – planets, the fairy dolls – angels, the decorations included animals and birds, reindeer and sheep. And there was a lot more. The whole of creation, local and universal was represented by the tree at the top of which was the star of Bethlehem.

God, the vicar said, who created everything we could imagine and more besides, comes to us, as a baby born at Bethlehem.

I’ve never forgotten it.

A few years ago a fellow parishioner at St Agnes, Ruth Modeste, a good woman, originally from St Lucia, told me that her vicar had once answered the question, – Why did God choose to come as a baby?

“Because no one is frightened of a baby.”

I’ve never forgotten that either.

One of my great nephews, George, who is twelve and at school in Wellington New Zealand, was required along with others in his class to write a speech on the subject ‘What do you need for the future.’ Many chose ‘Adaptability.’ George chose ‘Connections.’

I have been sent the beginning and ending of what he wrote and, with his permission, I am including it in my ‘Thoughts.’

‘What is the most important skill for the future? is it Creativity? Communication? Adaptability? I thought about it for a while, but I realised, connections are what form society.  Think about it. If no one knew anyone else then where would we be?’

‘So, what is the point of this speech?  I wanted to emphasise the importance of our connections, how important it is to a whole, as well as an individual. How now in the modern world we need to be careful with our connections . But we also need to help someone in need.  And just maybe, you could lay the first beam in a bridge, because humanity needs commitment to building bridges, not walls, because it’s through those bridges that a better world can be build’.

I understand there was a rather gloomy bit in the middle that I’ve not been sent but also there were sentences about the importance of touch with which I would strongly agree. However I too think it is the connections that matter. Thank you George.

I have been told that the key to dealing with the trials of old age is routine and commitment. I am beginning to get mine sorted now I know what this means.

Routine is not only brushing my teeth but also doing Squareword and Wordle first thing in the morning to get my mind going, saying my prayers to do the same for my soul and taking pills at the doctor’s orders for the body.

Commitment is, on most mornings, going to church, or on some, swimming. Commitment, I gather, involves other people and activities when my absence might be noticed. I imagine it includes accepting invitations and inviting people to dinner or to Sunday lunch.

I am sure all this is a good idea and I am doing my best. I am also taking two dessert spoons of extra virgin olive oil in the morning and a modest whisky before bedtime. Here’s to life!

The highlight of this cruise has been the visit to the Greek Island of Patmos. On this island St John, one of the Twelve Disciples of Jesus, received visions of the final days of Earth and the creation of a new Earth as the Holy City.

St John was on Patmos as a prisoner under the persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Diocletian. It was while in a cave that St John heard a loud voice instructing him to write down what he had seen in the visions. What he wrote became the final book in the New Testament, The Book of Revelation.

The cave is a place of pilgrimage and a tourist attraction. There is a small Greek Orthodox Church beside the cave high up on the mountain. A monk tends the church and shrine.

There was a tour from our ship to visit the cave and the monastery associated with it. Some of us on the tour were deeply moved by the mystery and the holiness of the place.

It made me think of visionaries and of holy places and our need for both. The first to encourage us to look beyond ourselves the second to acknowledge Holiness present here and now.