Deputy
Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s Christmas Message
23 December 2014
In 1914, a young soldier wrote
home to tell his family and friends about Christmas spent in the trenches of
World War One. “It was a memorable day,” he said. “From Christmas Eve to Boxing
Day, not a shot being fired.”
In this centenary year, we’re
again reminded of the importance of these brief informal truces, which gave
soldiers on both sides a moment’s respite from that violent conflict, and
which, in the decades since, have come to symbolise the power of Christmas to
bring people together, even in the most challenging of circumstances.
At the heart of this festival is
the birth of Jesus Christ, a time of joy and celebration for Christians around
the world. Yet the core values this story represents – love, charity, hope –
are universal, speaking to and uniting people of all faiths and none.
This Christmas and beyond, we can
each do our bit to help secure the fairer, more peaceful world that the
soldiers in 1914 longed for, and our children deserve. Reaching out to those
people – wherever they may be – who feel isolated, who are caught up in
conflict or who need our help.
This is also our chance to say
thank you to the countless men and women working so hard at home and abroad to
keep us safe and well over the festive period. That includes of course our armed
forces and their families who sacrifice so much for our country. Our emergency
service workers and all those caring for others this Christmas.
Thank you, and may I wish
everyone a merry Christmas and a very happy and healthy New Year. |
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