Archbishop of Uganda's Christmas message -- focus on the family 14 Dec 2016 Author: Stanley Ntagali Christmas is coming! I wonder what that means for you. Of course, Christmas means lots of feasting. It also means higher prices for sodas, for food, and for transport. It can often mean an increase in crime, especially theft. The heart of the message of Christmas, however, is found in the words of the Bible, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4.4-5) Jesus was the Son of God. He was born from the Virgin Mary and raised by Joseph. Jesus was both fully God and fully human. He left the glory of heaven, took on human flesh, and immersed himself in the real challenges of this world. He did all of this so that he could redeem us and take us with him back to heaven. Jesus learned his faith from Mary and Joseph so well that by the age of 12 he was able to engage his religious leaders. He learned carpentry as a trade from Joseph. Even though Jesus was the Son of God, he was born into a family and grew up in a family. His family was even with him when he died. In this Christmas season, I want us as a country to think about Jesus and his family. At our Provincial Assembly in August, we declared 2017 to be the Year of the Family, and I want to launch it today. We are blessed that the President made the same declaration for the entire country. The family is the fabric of society and the base for a stable community and nation. It is lamentable that the families in our country are facing deliberate attack by different evil forces both from within and outside. This makes our children very vulnerable. They are growing in a very violent environment and many have become victims of circumstances. In the process they are denied their rights. We are greatly concerned about domestic violence, child sacrifice, drunkenness, drug abuse, sodomy and homosexuality, joblessness, poverty, permissiveness, peer pressure and other evils which target the family directly. We must focus our attention on protecting and guiding our families in our communities and entire country. Secondly, the Family is the place where new life begins. Children are born within families. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is a God who values LIFE. We are, therefore, opposed to abortion and are opposed to the plans of the Ministry of Health to draft a bill to legalize abortion. Abortion which is done by one's choice is against God’s will and the Bible considers it to be murder. Any life has the right to continue and no one has the mandate to destroy it. Click here for the rest of the article: http://www.anglican.ink/article/archbishop-ugandas-christmas-message-focus-family