General News
22 December, 2023
Helping to lessen the load
WHILE Christmas is a time of joy and festivity, some people may feel pain due to an empty spot at the Christmas dinner table.
For those people, a Blue Service was held last Thursday to provide an opportunity to remember and reflect on those who died during the year while surrounded by those experiencing the same grief.
Reverend Suzie Castle said the service was a joint initiative of the Anglican, Catholic and Uniting Churches.
“For different reasons, we know Christmas isn't a joyous time for everyone,” she said.
“The Blue service offers space to remember, reflect and lament losses experienced throughout the year.
“These losses may be death of a loved one, death of a way of life or death of something that died within us.
“The service was made up of music, message and support with the hope some form of healing might manifest in a person's life. Or in the very least, for someone who can't move through grief or trauma, they come to know others are there to walk beside them through the dark times together.”
The service invited mourners to light a candle for those who died, and to write words that were never said to a loved one.
The notes were set in an empty manger to represent passing the burden of grief to God, with rocks also taken away to represent pain still being felt; those who feel their pain has eased can then return the rocks to Rev. Castle as a sign of passing the burden to God.
Rev. Castle said while Blue Services do not typically attract people due to grief being a private matter, there was still a larger congregation than the previous year.
“My prayer is that you would leave the service having rediscovered the hope that comes through our relationship with Jesus leading to a transformative state of being,” she said.
“I hope the take away for people is remembering how closely God identifies with us through loss.
“We remember Good Friday as well the time Jesus grieved when his friend Lazarus died. Maybe remembering Christ's own grief and death helps people feel closer to and draw strength from God.
“I dare to hope people feel they carry a lesser load by allowing Jesus to shift some of the sadness, weariness and heaviness we endure when in grief.”
The Blue Service has been an annual event in December for a number of years, with Rev. Castle saying this years’ service was also a personal moment for her.
“With my own father having died earlier this year, our family is navigating the empty place at the table this Christmas just as so many others have,” she said.
“The shape of the family changes over the years due to death, but I encourage people to honour those we have loved and lost by living the best life they can.
“I know dad wouldn't want his family to stop living, laughing and loving because these are the things that capture his spirit.
“If anyone is struggling through grief they are welcome to contact me.”
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