Shining light in dark places: A magistrate’s reflection on faith and service this Christmas
My name is Elliot Curryer and I sit as a Family Court magistrate on the East Kent Bench, having been appointed in June 2025. Growing up, I experienced first-hand the impact of family breakdown and subsequently family court proceedings that thankfully delivered a much better situation for my family.
As I got older, I became more aware that I wanted to give something back and help my community through the magistracy. It was an honour to be appointed as a young magistrate to try and help children and families facing often very challenging situations.
Christmas is fast approaching, and it is a special time for many people of all faiths and none, but it is particularly important for Christians, like me.
Indeed, my Christian faith was a large part of what inspired me to apply to become a magistrate.
As Christians, we are called to follow in the footsteps of Jesus who, “did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:28). I see my role as a magistrate as service, to my community, and to the families that come before me. While my decisions are on the law, my faith also gives me the strength and courage to face some of the more difficult cases that we can often have before us.
Whilst I have not been sitting for long, I have been so encouraged by my colleagues on the bench, who go above and beyond in their roles and constantly strive to deliver the best possible outcome. Being a magistrate is extremely rewarding, but it can also be very challenging.
At Christmas we celebrate God coming to earth in the person of Jesus, who was born in a humble stable in Bethlehem. We read in the Bible that Jesus’ coming was a cause of great hope and joy to those who witnessed it namely, his parents, the shepherds, and wise men. Jesus’ coming remains a source of great hope and joy for Christians all over the world today. Indeed, the wonderful Christmas hymn ‘Joy to the World’ by Isaac Watts begins with the words, “Joy to the world; the Lord is come”, Christmas is above all a time of joy and celebration.
It is particularly poignant that we celebrate this joyful event in the middle of our dark, cold, and often wet, British winter. An important theme in the Bible is the contrast between light and darkness. In John’s gospel, he describes Jesus and his coming into the world in the following way, “In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5).
Many of us experience darkness in our own lives through illness or difficult life circumstances. As members of the judiciary, we are often exposed to many aspects of darkness in our society whether as the result of crime or family breakdown. But just as the stars shine brighter the darker the night sky, it is so with the hope that Jesus’ coming into the world offers us. Further on in John’s gospel we read that, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). That verse encapsulates why Christmas is of such great importance to Christians all over the world and why Jesus himself is the greatest gift we can receive.
This Christmas, as you see the lights shining on the Christmas tree, I hope you are reminded of the verse in John’s gospel, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it”. (John 1:5) Christians believe Jesus is the light of the world and as members of the judiciary we reflect that as we shine light into often dark places, with the hope that we can impact people’s lives for the better and deliver justice fairly.
Interested in serving your community through the magistracy?
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