When the world bestows atrocity, tyranny and acts of war, Jesus calls people to discover ways to live in harmony, Australian Anglican Primate and Archbishop of Brisbane Phillip Aspinall says in his Christmas message.
He says Christians honour the birth of Jesus who came as a child, threatened by violence and whose family was forced to flee.
''We cling to the prospect of peace in the face of conflict, fear, hatred, greed and cruelty,'' he says.
Jesus challenged people to triumph over retribution and loathing, to pray for their enemies and to love one another.
Chair of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and Archbishop of Adelaide Philip Wilson says big decisions have to be made about the Murray River.
''After all, if we have no water, we have no life and we need to use our wisdom to decide what to do with this crucial resource. But just as we need water to live, we need Jesus to live,'' he says. ''When He came into the world in Bethlehem His coming was like an onrush of a new fountain of life that led to the gifts of eternal life that he shares with all of us through his saving death and resurrection,'' he says.
Archbishop Wilson said this Christmas was a time to think of fellow Christians around the world, many of whom were persecuted because of their religious beliefs.
President of the Uniting Church in Australia Alistair Macrae says there have been some ugly things in Australia over the past year. ''We have seen a dialogue of fear and distrust overtake that of the big idea, the welcome for all that we like to think characterises our nation,'' he said.
The federal coordinator of Churches of Christ, Craig Brown, says Australia is a gifted nation with abundant natural resources, freedom and democracy and a stable economy in a sea of worldwide angst.
''However, there are tensions in our gifted land this Christmas. There are those who feel they don't share in the abundant gifts this country has, such as our indigenous brothers and sisters,'' he says. Graham Downie
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