What Jesus taught us

This is the 47th year in a row that I have written a column for The Spectator’s Christmas issue. It began when I was a young 40-year-old, and is at present being written by an 87-year-old vet. The years have passed in an eye-blink. Recently I asked myself why do bad things happen to good people? (Well, not very good people, but well-intentioned.) This question has occupied thinkers throughout the ages. People who do not believe in a good God should logically have no problem with the existence of evil. In my case, I very much believe in God and it has served me well during a very long and very happy life.

Recently, however, something bad happened to me in a Swiss village court of law, which led me to suspend writing my regular column. Then something extraordinary took place. My wife Alexandra, a devout Catholic whom I married 52 years ago when she was young and didn’t know what she was doing, quoted the Bible to me: ‘Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.’ She also reminded me of the book of Job. God must have had a reason to punish Job so cruelly, yet poor old Job was innocent. God did it to illustrate his unquestionable power and that his ways are never understood by mortals. ‘We have two beautiful children and four even more beautiful grandchildren,’ she said. ‘You’re healthy and well-off. What else do you want?’

She was hard to argue with – she was not born a Serene Highness for nothing – and she has convinced me not to hate or ask why. Mind you, I’m appealing but it takes a long time.

Now let’s get back to Christmas.