The thoughts of Pope Francis during his Christmas night homily went to the children "devoured by wars".
The pontiff, referring to the Child of Bethlehem, asked to take a look at the little ones. «Even this Christmas, a humanity insatiable by money, power and pleasure makes no room, as it was for Jesus, for the smallest, for so many unborn, poor, forgotten children. I think above all of the children devoured by wars, poverty and injustice. But Jesus comes right there, a child in the manger of waste and rejection. In him, child of Bethlehem, there is every child . And there is an invitation to look at life, politics and history through the eyes of children», said Bergoglio, who arrived at the basilica in a wheelchair and appeared a little tired, at times with a hoarse voice.
Seven thousand faithful inside the basilica, and another three thousand were outside to follow mass from St. Peter's Square on giant screens.
This Christmas 2022, the Pope's greatest concern is for a peace that is struggling to make room in the world . "We are called to be a Church that adores the poor Jesus and serves Jesus in the poor - he continued - Of course, it is not easy to leave the warm warmth of worldliness to embrace the bare beauty of the grotto in Bethlehem, but let us remember that it is not really Christmas - warns the Pontiff - without the poor. Without them we celebrate Christmas, but not that of Jesus. Brothers, sisters, at Christmas God is poor: may charity be reborn!».
Finally, the invitation to be concrete because God's love for humanity is "concrete" and " let us not let this Christmas go by without doing something good ", "let us revive a little hope in those who have lost it" .
Tomorrow, on Christmas day, Bergoglio will impart the Urbi et Orbi blessing with the thought of the areas of the planet that suffer the most in this historical moment.
(Unioneonline/ss)
