Christ among refugees and migrants at Christmas, part 3: the clash of symbols

The debate about Christmas and politics goes on. Reflecting on Tommy Robinson’s campaign to “put Christ back into Christmas,” soon-to-be Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, is quoted in an interview. She says that the use of Christian symbols to oppress—in this case the migrant and refugee—and to cause offence is “absolutely wrong.”

This should not happen. If you look at the symbols Jesus used, it’s foot-washing, sitting alongside the outcast and the stranger. He was a refugee at birth, born in a place because of the generosity and hospitality of others.

Two things bother me about this.

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