Click here to see The King’s 2025 Christmas Broadcast in full

A few weeks ago, The Queen and I were delighted to
make a State Visit to the Vatican where we prayed with Pope
Leo in a historic moment of spiritual unity. Together, we
celebrated the Jubilee theme, “Pilgrims of Hope”.
Pilgrimage is a word less used today, but it has particular
significance for our modern world, and especially at
Christmas. It is about journeying forward, into the future,
while also journeying back to remember the past and learn
from its lessons.

We did this during the Summer, as we celebrated the
80th Anniversaries of VE and VJ Day. The end of the Second
World War is now remembered by fewer and fewer of us, as
the years pass. But the courage and sacrifice of our
servicemen and women, and the way communities came
together in the face of such great challenge, carry a timeless
message for us all. These are the values which have shaped
our country and the Commonwealth. As we hear of division,
both at home and abroad, they are the values of which we
must never lose sight. For instance, it is impossible not to be
deeply moved by the ages of the fallen – as the gravestones in
our War Cemeteries remind us. The young people who
fought and helped save us from defeat in both World Wars
were often only 18, 19, or 20 years of age.

Journeying is a constant theme of the Christmas Story.
The Holy Family made a journey to Bethlehem and arrived
homeless without proper shelter. The Wise Men made a
pilgrimage from the East to worship at the cradle of Christ;
and the Shepherds journeyed from field to town in search of
Jesus, the Saviour of the World. In each case, they journeyed
with others; and relied on the companionship and kindness of
others. Through physical and mental challenge, they found an
inner strength. To this day, in times of uncertainty, these
ways of living are treasured by all the great Faiths and provide
us with deep wells of hope: of resilience in the face of
adversity; peace through forgiveness; simply getting to know
our neighbours and, by showing respect to one another,
creating new friendships.

Indeed, as our world seems to spin ever faster, our
journeying may pause, to quieten our minds – in T.S. Eliot’s
words “At the still point of the turning world” – and allow our
souls to renew. In this, with the great diversity of our
communities, we can find the strength to ensure that right
triumphs over wrong. It seems to me that we need to cherish
the values of compassion and reconciliation; the way Our
Lord lived and died. This year, I have heard so many
examples of this, both here and abroad. These stories of the
triumph of courage over adversity give me hope, from our
venerable military veterans to selfless humanitarian workers
in this century’s most dangerous conflict zones; to the ways in
which individuals and communities display spontaneous
bravery, instinctively placing themselves in harm’s way to
defend others.

As I meet people of different faiths, I find it enormously
encouraging to hear how much we have in common; a shared
longing for peace and a deep respect for all life. If we can find
time in our journey through life to think on these virtues we
can all make the future more hopeful. Of course, the greatest
pilgrimage of all is the journey we celebrate today – the story
of the One who ‘came down to Earth from Heaven’, ‘whose
shelter was a stable’ and who shared his life with ‘the poor
and lowly’. It was a pilgrimage with a purpose, heralded by
Angels, that there should be peace on Earth. That prayer for
peace and reconciliation – for “doing to others as we would
have them do to us” – which rang out over the fields near
Bethlehem more than two thousand years ago, still
reverberates from there and around the world today. It is a
prayer for our times, and our communities too, as we journey
through our lives.

So, with these words and my whole heart, I wish you all
a most peaceful and very happy Christmas.