2020 CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR MESSAGE BY THE SUPREME KNIGHT, SIR KT. BRO. CHARLES L. L. COBB AND THE GRAND LADY, MRL SIS. DAME DR. AGATHA AKUA BONNEY
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We bring you warm season’s greetings and best wishes for Christmas.
Christmas indeed means different things to different people.
To some, it is a period of merrymaking and to others, it is a time for sober reflection- stock-taking of their lives and the setting of new goals for the ensuing year.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, for either group, Christmas should also be a period of joy and thanksgiving to God for the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ! This is the message that was conveyed through the Angelic chorus that accompanied the announcement of Christ’s birth to the shepherds: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men” Luke 2:14 (KJV)
Christ born in Bethlehem represents peace, joy and freedom from sin.
For the most part of this year, we have had to grapple with the Covid-19 pandemic and its harmful and negative effects. The fact of our existence today when many others have perished around the world from this deadly disease should be a good enough reason for us to see this Christmas as a period of thanksgiving to God for the gift of life.
While we have every cause to rejoice in the Lord, we should pause for a moment during the period to reflect on our lives and the Noble Order in the midst of COVID-19 and after.
It is a fact that many of us have lost jobs or suffered a reduction in incomes as a result of this pandemic. This state of affairs has no doubt, impacted negatively on the revenues of our various Councils and Courts. There is a need for deep rethinking in order to find new innovative ways of doing things to ensure our continued existence. This should be one of our pre-occupations during this season.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, even as we celebrate Christmas, let us pray to God to give consolation to families bereaved as a result of this contagion, heal the afflicted and bring an end to this deadly disease.
While thanking you for your support and assistance in making our Noble Order resilient and relevant in this period of uncertainties, we pray that you enjoy a well-deserved rest this Christmas by spending quality time with your families and loved ones, not forgetting to stay safe by adhering to all COVID-19 protocols.
Let us enter the New Year with hope and assurance of God’s Mercy knowing that we have forgiven and done our very best to reconcile with our Brothers and Sisters who have offended us in the past.
The indeed Year 2020 has been a long and difficult year and it is time to join the heavenly angels in singing, “Glory to God in the highest…!”
We wish you and your families a blessed and joyous Christmas and a New Year filled with God’s abundant graces.