Christmas is a special time for all of us, no matter who we are, where we are or how old we are. It is an exciting time, a time for celebration, for caring and sharing not only with family and friends but with those who are neither family nor friends. It is a time for love because that is what Christmas is all about: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son.”

So, as we celebrate this Christmas in our several different ways, let us remember what Christmas was meant to be – a time of thanksgiving to God for giving us His son, the light and saviour of the world. And let us live this Christmas in the spirit of the love which gave birth to that babe in the manger in that little town of Bethlehem. We can glorify God this Christmas in so many ways. We can bring back the love and we can spread it far and wide:

. There are those who are confronted everyday with the harshness of life – the jobless, the poor and the ignored – for whom Christmas might make no difference. We can make it different! Let’s reach out to them and, if we can, share some of what we have.

. There are the shut-ins, the sick and the bed-ridden whose world might seem no bigger than the tiny room in which they live. Let’s reach out to them. Let’s bring them into our world.

. There are those who are burdened with grief, who are trying to overcome the loss of a loved one during the year. It will be particularly hard for them this Christmas. Let’s offer them some comfort. Let’s make them a part of our Christmas.

. And let us especially remember the children because, to them even more than the rest of us, Christmas is expected to be a time of happiness. Let’s try to make them happy. Let’s not disappoint them.

To those Jamaicans who are returning to spend Christmas “on the rock” we say “Welcome home!” And to those in the Diaspora who are not able to be here with us and who will spend Christmas in faraway places – maybe in the biting cold and mounting snow – we will miss you and we know you will miss the warmth and the fun of the good old Jamaican Christmas.

Let’s bring back the love this Christmas and let’s spread it not just among our immediate family but right across the nation because we are a “nation family”. And despite whatever difficulties we might be facing, let us give thanks for “to God be the glory, great things He hath done. So loved He the world that he gave us His son”.

A blessed Christmas to you and to all Jamaica.

Bruce Golding

Leader of the Opposition