Modern take on the nativity
The REV MAX CROSS, rector, Bedhampton, says use your phone for an immersive Christmas special
DO YOU enjoy Christmas with all your senses – the sight of twinkling lights, the smell of mince pies, and the sound of sleigh bells ringing?
Sometimes it’s the all-round experience that makes Christmas special – the thrill of Christmas lights being switched on, the excited chatter of children, the familiar carols and the promise of mulled wine.
At Bedhampton Church we’d also love to engage all your senses as we share the Christmas story with you. We’ve created a ‘Christmas Experience’ that puts you in the centre of the story of Jesus’s birth.
We’ve made an illuminated trail for you to follow outside historic St Thomas’s Church in Bidbury Lane. Each time you stop, there’s a nativity character to meet, and narration and carols to hear on your mobile phone.
Hopefully it gives a sense of what it felt like 2,000 years ago when Mary and Joseph were hunting for somewhere to stay in Bethlehem – and Mary ended up giving birth to Jesus in a dirty, draughty stable.
Come any time between 3pm and 6pm, from tomorrow until January 1. Take selfies as you walk along the trail and share them with friends with the hashtag #AtTheHeartOfChristmas, the Church of England’s national Christmas slogan.
This Sunday and December 19, you’re also welcome at St Nicholas’ Church hall in Belmont Grove to see our life-size Advent calendar, any time between 4.30pm and 6pm. Members of our community have created gorgeous Advent scenes inside tents. It’s free, no booking is required and we’ll offer you drinks.
And you’re welcome to our carol service at St Thomas’ Church, at 6.30pm on December 19. Families may like to try one of our two crib services at our sister church, St Nicholas, at 4pm and 5.30pm on Christmas Eve. Full details on bedhampton.church.
My prayer is that the sights, sounds and smells you experience help you remember the birth of a special child 2,000 years ago – the truth that God came to Earth as a vulnerable, new-born baby, to experience the joys and sorrows of human existence.