Christmas Day - 2024
Sermon for the Nativity, Christmas Day - 2024
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
The Rev. Andrew McLarty
The Christmas Truce
On this holy morning, we gather to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. The familiar words of Luke’s Gospel transport us to that humble stable in Bethlehem, where the light of God’s love entered the world in the form of a child. And in Titus, we are reminded that through the grace of God, salvation appeared for all people, not because of our deeds, but because of God’s mercy. These readings, brimming with hope and love, call us to reflect on the profound peace that Christ brings into our lives and into the world.
This peace, however, is not just an abstract concept. It is a peace that transforms hearts and transcends even the darkest of circumstances. One powerful example of this peace in action occurred during the Christmas Truce of 1914, in the midst of the horrors of World War I.
In Flanders, on Christmas Eve of that year, a soldier mired in the trenches; sitting in mud and slush, dead comrades lying in the no man’s land between the opposing positions—one soldier, a German officer, Walter Kirchhoff, a tenor with the Berlin Opera, when he was fighting a war, began to sing “Silent Night.” A Frenchman recognized his voice. I read that he sang it twice, once in German, then in English. Others joined in the singing. Some began lighting candles. Soldiers began to leave the trenches, gathering in “no man’s land.” After exchanging Christmas greetings, they helped each other remove the fallen from “No Man’s Land.” It was an improptu truce. Lighting candles together, singing carols and hymns together, “exchanging the peace” in the middle of “No Man’s Land:” The event was seen as a kind of miracle of love, a rare moment of peace just a few months into a war that would eventually claim over 15 million lives. For a moment, but only a moment, they knew they were Christians by their love for each other. For one brief, miraculous moment, the peace of Christ was made manifest amidst the chaos of war.
Peace and Joy to the World
This story reminds us that the message of Christmas—God’s love for all humanity—has the power to break through the walls we build and the divisions we cling to. On that first Christmas night, shepherds heard the angel’s proclamation: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” This peace is not merely the absence of conflict; it is the presence of God’s reconciling love.
The truce of 1914 shows us what is possible when we let Christ’s love guide us. Enemies became neighbors, if only for a moment, because they recognized their shared humanity. They remembered, as Titus teaches us, that God’s kindness and love have appeared to all people, making us heirs of eternal life.
As we reflect on the miracle of Christ’s birth, let us ask ourselves: how can we bring this peace into our lives and the world today? How can we, like those soldiers in the trenches, step out into the “no man’s land” of our own divisions to share the light of Christ with others?
This Christmas, let us embrace the profound truth of the Incarnation: God became one of us so that we might know the depth of divine love. In response, we are called to live as peacemakers, carrying the light of Christ into the darkest corners of the world.
May we, like the shepherds, leave this place glorifying and praising God for all we have seen and heard. And may the miracle of Christmas—the miracle of love and peace—take root in our hearts and shine through our lives.
Amen.
