Archbishop of Canterbury and Elvis

What is happening to the Church of England? Last week, I went along to Bath Abbey to listen to my first carol service of the year. It was a celebration by local primary schools to coincide with the annual 'Christmas' market in Bath. I managed to avoid the lightening bolts, but what did strike me was the fact that it was only 25th November. I live in a world where my local hotel gets a Christmas tree in the window in October and where the major supermarkets start getting the yuletide logs on the shelf in September, but the dear old C of E overturning tradition for the sake of commercial interests took me back a little. It wasn't even Advent.

"I don't mind a bit of God in my Christmas celebrations." I was on the back foot and defending the very religious advent calender I had bought for the children. "I thought it was rather pretty and when you put a light behind it there is a stained glass effect." Sounds terrible doesn't it? It's the Catholic in me and Catholics love kitsch. Lourdes makes Elvis's 'jungle room' at Graceland look positively restrained. Meanwhile my wife accepted my position with typical grace, her shoulders barely sagging under the weight of another one of my philosophical positions. Still, the unspoken refrain echoed around the dinner table, "WHERE'S THE CHOCOLATE, DAD?"

Now, in my book, and this might come as a shock to many of you, Christmas is not just about chocolate. "What's Christmas about?" I asked my nine year old daughter.  "Christmas is about presents, making people happy, but not God (she volunteered without any prompting), unless it is to go to Church to get one of those orange things and see our friends." I think she meant the Christingle orange that all the children receive at the Christmas Eve service we attend. The candle and attached sweets are a great attraction to small children. I brushed aside a proud humanist tear.

My Christmas present

So why Church? Each year I have visions of friends and family singing carols around the piano and the children satisfied with one of my old football socks stuffed with a tangerine and some walnuts. Then I remember that I'm not Bob Cratchit, but instead, a rather self-indulgent 40 year old who likes a present or two himself - I'm still holding out for a yacht. However, more than the gifts, what makes Christmas special for most of us, I suspect, is we all have a variety of routines and family traditions providing a sense of reassurance that, quite simply, we are not alone.

Church and carol services are a pretty important part of the Christmas experience. For most, it will be the only visit to Church all year, but, there is no doubt that Christmas would not be the same for us and many friends, without carols, possibly a moment of collective reflection, followed by a beer and some laughter. We might not believe in God, but Church still provides one of the rare occasions when the community comes together. Perhaps, that is why despite losing my religious faith many years ago, I have maintained a great belief in acts of collective worship.

I don't think that is as hypocritical as it sounds. Ritual is pretty important to human-beings. All known societies have practised rituals and although they serve a variety of purposes, spiritual, emotional or contemplative - they almost always strengthen social bonds between people. Not long ago that was vital to survival but in our individualistic age perhaps it is more important to our psychological well-being. Communal activity is intrinsically satisfying. Whether it is chanting at a football match or singing at a carol service we feel better for it.

Can that justify the Abbey holding a carol service in November? Please follow me over the pond. While Christianity has been in steady decline in Europe, the USA has seen a blossoming of Christian Churches. Research strongly suggests that one of the reasons for this success has been their willingness to embrace market forces. That means that instead of a limited number of denominations being tied to rigid teachings like in Europe, a huge variety of Churches have emerged in the US to cater for the wide range of tastes and attitudes. In other words, if you want to express a form of Christian spirituality then there is a flavour to suit you. It's the perfect market.

The market mechanism can extend into the service. I have been told by a preacher in Memphis that if I gave his Church $10 then he would pray and something good would happen to me but if I gave him $100 then something really good would happen to me. I stuck with the $10 and had a very nice meal that night. In these market driven times that might be the sort of deal that would attract more people to Church. It seems that people aren't prepared to pay tax these days unless they receive an obvious and tangible benefit to themselves, so perhaps the Reverend Al Green's Church in Memphis is showing our old 'stuck in the mud' C of E the light. Hallelujah brothers and sisters!

So instead of driving the money lenders out of the Temple, perhaps the Archbishop of Canterbury is slowly welcoming them back in. Those packed churches must be both joyful and rather melancholy occasions for the hard-working Vicars as they see their audience ebb away for another year. What price would they pay to have full Churches? If only it could be Christmas every week. Well in Bath they have started the process. Carols in November, what a great way to improve attendances. Why stop there? October, September...

After all, in 1747, when Bishop Johannes de Watteville invented the Christingle orange, did he really think the children would be more interested in the symbolism than the attached treats? I don't think so. He was just trying to boost his congregation.