Cllr James Tucker, Conservative

Tregolls ward, Truro City Council

Not everyone who celebrates Christmas believes in the story that gave the holiday its name. Some have stepped away from faith; some were never part of it; some hold a patchwork of doubts and half‑beliefs that don’t quite fit into any creed.

Yet when December arrives, we still find ourselves drawn into the glow of the season - not out of obligation, but out of something gentler and more human.

Long before nativity scenes and midnight masses, midwinter was a time when people gathered to push back the darkness. They lit fires, shared food, exchanged tokens of goodwill and reminded one another that the cold would pass.

Christmas, in its modern form, still carries that ancient instinct: the desire to create warmth when the world is at its darkest. You don’t need belief to feel that pull. You only need to be human.

Rituals are not the property of faith. They are the architecture of meaning and anchor us when repeated. That is why the first mince pie of the season, the ritual of decorating a tree, or the annual chaos of family gatherings are small traditions that do not require a creed. They simply require participation. In a world that often feels fragmented and unpredictable, ritual offers a rare sense of continuity.

That sense of connection is as small and instinctive as a subtle nod motorcyclists give as they pass one another. Tiny gestures, but powerful ones - reminders that we see each other, that we share the same journey, even briefly. Christmas carries that same recognition.

Giving is a choice. For the faithless, Christmas is not a contradiction. It is a celebration of the things that endure even when belief does not: kindness, community, memory, and hope.

Perhaps that is enough.