Hope for Christmas
'At Christmas, God remains with us' - Pope Francis
The Christmas season is a reminder to Christians that despite hardships, God chose to join himself to humanity and still remains by its side, Pope Francis said. "Christmas is a reminder that God loves us and wants to be with us." The Incarnation "is a stupendous gift, and it brings with it another: that we may also love one another as brothers and sisters."
"How much we need this today," he added, "so many people, so many children suffer because of war. Pope Francis recalled that more than 3,000 children have died in Gaza since the outbreak of war in the Holy Land, as well as the more than 500 children that have died in Ukraine and the thousands that died during the years of war in Yemen.
"Their memory, in turn, invites us to be lights for the world, to touch the hearts of many people, especially those who can stop the whirlwind of violence," the pope said. He added that only by loving God and loving one another "can the world rediscover the light and the peace that it needs" and which was proclaimed by the angels who announced Jesus' birth.
Although the mystery of the Incarnation "leaves us without words," Pope Francis said "we can experience it in the encounter with the other that is different than myself: when my giving something to him or her becomes a receiving, it becomes a sharing, it becomes friendship."
(Vatican 15 December 2023 - Italian Catholic Action movement)
