Rejoice but remember: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom

To open a newspaper today is to enter a world of such horror, cruelty, vulgarity and corruption that one cannot imagine why almighty God does not decide, here and now, to put an end to it. But God knows better. There are many fine people around, and beautiful objects, and worthwhile activities, and as the year comes to an end we ought to remember them and give thanks. Just as there are 12 days of Christmas, so there are 12 blessings and here is my list for 2007. By a curious chance they all begin with the letter ‘F’.

First of all I give thanks for Family and Friends. Modern governments hate the family and seek to stamp it out. In China it is a criminal offence to have more than one child. Imagine the misery of a country where the phenomenon of an only child is a million strong. Here New Labour, as the latest scandals show, does not recognise a friendship unless qualified by a cash nexus. But we can show how much we value family and friendship by kneeling down each night by our beds and saying a prayer for each member of our family, and all our closest friends, by name. If this takes a long time, we can count ourselves lucky.

Then there are the Five Horse Chestnuts, great, big, burly, noble and straightforward trees, that stand in dignified formation at the entrance to Kensington Gardens, at the Queensway gate. I admire them every day of my life, for they represent stability in an age when most things constantly change for the worse. They are not immune from attack, for ten years ago the park rangers lopped off some of their lower limbs, presumably as a result of the infamous Health and Safety Act. But I have got used to this mutilation and so have the Big Five.