Queen Elizabeth II - Christmas Message 2007

LONDON (AFP) - Queen Elizabeth II, in her annual Christmas Day message to Britain and the Commonwealth, on Tuesday urged people to take responsibility for vulnerable individuals excluded by modern society.

The sovereign, 81, said the modern world could be a distant, hostile place where it was all too easy for people to turn a blind eye. The birth of Jesus Christ was a tale of a family "which had been shut out," the queen said in the pre-recorded broadcast. "The Christmas story also draws attention to all those people who are on the edge of society -- people who feel cut off and disadvantaged; people who, for one reason or another, are not able to enjoy the full benefits of living in a civilised and law-abiding community," she said. "For these people the modern world can seem a distant and hostile place. "It is all too easy to 'turn a blind eye', 'to pass by on the other side', and leave it to experts and professionals. "All the great religious teachings of the world press home the message that everyone has a responsibility to care for the vulnerable.

"Fortunately, there are many groups and individuals, often unsung and unrewarded, who are dedicated to ensuring that the 'outsiders' are given a chance to be recognised and respected.

"However, each one of us can also help by offering a little time, a talent or a possession, and taking a share in the responsibility for the well-being of those who feel excluded."

The broadcast Christmas speech is a tradition started by Queen Elizabeth II's grandfather king George V in 1932.

It is a personal message to the Commonwealth and a rare occasion where she does not need to seek the advice of ministers.

The queen reflected on the changes she has witnessed in the 50 years since making her first televised Christmas message in 1957.

Wearing the same three-stringed pearl necklace as then, she watched a black-and-white clip of the broadcast on a flatscreen television.

As a sign of the changing times, the queen posted her message on the video-sharing website YouTube for the first time in an attempt to reach out to younger audiences.

"One of the features of growing old is a heightened awareness of change," she said.

"To remember what happened 50 years ago means that it is possible to appreciate what has changed in the meantime. It also makes you aware of what has remained constant.

"In my experience, the positive value of a happy family is one of the factors of human existence that has not changed.

"The immediate family of grandparents, parents and children, together with their extended family, is still the core of a thriving community."

She also paid tribute to the armed forces serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and hoped that people missing loved ones would find strength and comfort in their family and friends.

The queen ended her message by quoting from a traditional Christmas carol service.

"'Because this would most rejoice his heart, let us remember, in his name, the poor and the helpless, the cold, the hungry, and the oppressed; the sick and those who mourn, the lonely and the unloved'," she said.

"Wherever these words find you, and in whatever circumstances, I want to wish you all a blessed Christmas."

A Yuletide institution, the 10-minute broadcast is televised at 3:00 pm (1500 GMT) in Britain, as many families are recovering from their traditional turkey lunch.

It is broadcast at convenient local times across the 53-nation Commonwealth, a successor to the British empire which encompasses around a third of the world's countries and a quarter of the world's population.

Source: Yahoo News