Dear brothers and sisters,
«Let us all rejoice in the Lord: our Savior is born into the world. Today true peace has come to us from heaven” (Entrance Antiphon to the Christmas Eve Mass). This is how the liturgy sings on Christmas night, and this is how Bethlehem’s announcement echoes in the Church: the Child who was born of the Virgin Mary is the Lord Christ, sent by the Father to save us from sin and death. He is our peaceHe who overcame hatred and enmity with the merciful love of God. For this reason “the Christmas of the Lord is the Christmas of peace” (St. Leo the Great, Sermon 26).
Jesus was born in a stable, because there was no room for Him in the living quarters. As soon as he was born, his mother Mary “wrapped him in swaddling clothes and placed him in a manger” (see Luke 2:7). The Son of God, through whom everything was created, is not welcomed and his cradle is a poor manger for animals.
The eternal Word of the Father, whom the heavens cannot contain, chose to come into the world like this. Out of love he wanted to be born as a woman, to share our humanity; out of love he accepted poverty and rejection and he identified with those who are discarded and excluded.
In the Christmas of Jesus, the basic choice that will guide the entire life of the Son of God, up to his death on the cross, is already looming: the choice not to let us carry the burden of sin, but to carry it for us, to take charge of it. This, only He could do. But at the same time it showed what only we can do, that is, each of us assume our own share of responsibility. Yes, because God, who created us without us, cannot save us without us (see St. Augustine, Sermon 169, 11. 13), that is, without our free will to love. He who does not love is not saved, he is lost. And whoever does not love the brother he sees cannot love God he does not see (see 1 John 4:20).
Sisters and brothers, here is the path to peace: responsibility. If each of us – at all levels -, instead of accusing others, he would first of all recognize his own shortcomings and ask God for forgiveness, and at the same time put himself in the shoes of those who suffer, show solidarity with those who are weaker and more oppressed, then the world would change.
Jesus Christ is our peace first of all because he frees us from sin and then because he shows us the way to follow to overcome conflicts, all conflicts, from interpersonal to international ones. Without a heart free from sin, a forgiven heart, one cannot be peaceful men and women and builders of peace. This is why Jesus was born in Bethlehem and died on the cross: to free us from sin. He is the Savior. With his grace, we can and must each do our part to reject hatred, violence, opposition and practice dialogue, peace and reconciliation.
On this day of celebration, I would like to send a warm and fatherly greeting to all Christians, especially to those who live in the Middle East, whom I intended to meet recently on my first apostolic journey. I have listened to their fears and I know well their feeling of helplessness in the face of power dynamics that surpass them. The Child who is born in Bethlehem today is the same Jesus who says: «Have peace in me. In the world you have tribulations, but have courage: I have overcome the world!” (Jn 16.33).
From Him iWe invoke justice, peace and stability for Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, Syria, trusting in these divine words: «Practicing justice will give peace. Honoring justice will give peace and security forever” (Is 32,17).
We entrust the entire European continent to the Prince of Peace, asking him to continue to inspire a community and collaborative spiritfaithful to its Christian roots and its history, supportive and welcoming to those in need. We pray in a particular way for the tormented Ukrainian people: let the clash of weapons stop and the parties involved, supported by the commitment of the international community, find the courage to dialogue in a sincere, direct and respectful way.
From the Child of Bethlehem we implore peace and consolation for the victims of all the wars taking place in the world, especially the forgotten ones; and for those who suffer from injustice, political instability, religious persecution and terrorism. I particularly remember the brothers and sisters of Sudan, South Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In these last days of the Jubilee of Hope, let us pray to the God made man for the dear people of Haiti, so that all forms of violence in the country may cease and progress on the path to peace and reconciliation.
The Child May Jesus inspire those in Latin America who have political responsibilities, so that, in facing the numerous challenges, space is given to dialogue for the common good and not to ideological and partisan preclusions.
We ask the Prince of Peace to illuminate the Myanmar with the light of a future of reconciliation: restore hope to the young generations, guide the entire Burmese people on paths of peace and accompany those who live without a home, security or trust in the future.
We ask Him to restore the ancient friendship between Thailand and Cambodia and that the parties involved continue to work towards reconciliation and peace.
We also entrust to Him the populations ofSouthern Asia and Oceania, severely tested by recent and devastating natural disasters, which have hit entire populations hard. Faced with such trials, I invite everyone to renew with conviction our common commitment to helping those who suffer.
Dear brothers and sisters,
in the darkness of the night, “the true light came into the world, which enlightens every man” (Jn 1.9), but “his own did not welcome him” (Jn 1.11). Let us not allow ourselves to be overcome by indifference towards those who suffer, because God is not indifferent to our miseries.
In becoming man, Jesus takes on our fragility, he identifies with each of us: with those who no longer have anything and have lost everything, like the inhabitants of Gaza; with those who are in the grip of hunger and poverty, as the Yemeni people; with those who are fleeing from their homeland to seek a future elsewhere, like the many refugees and migrants who cross the Mediterranean or travel the American continent; with those who have lost their jobs and with those who are looking for one, like many young people who struggle to find a job; with those who are exploited, such as too many underpaid workers; with those who are in prison and often live in inhumane conditions.
The invocation of peace that rises from every land reaches the heart of God, as a poet writes:
«Not the peace of a cease-fire,
not even the vision of the wolf and the lamb,
but rather
like in the heart when the excitement is over
and we can only speak of great tiredness.
(…)
Let him come
like wild flowers,
suddenly, because the field
needs it: wild peace”.(Y. Amichai)
On this holy day, let us open our hearts to our brothers and sisters who are in need and in pain. In doing so we open it to the Child Jesus, who welcomes us with his open arms and reveals his divinity to us: “But to those who welcomed him he gave power to become children of God” (Jn 1:12).
In a few days the Jubilee Year will end. The Holy Doors will close, but Christ, our hope, always remains with us! He is the always open Door, which introduces us into divine life. It is the happy announcement of this day: the Child who was born is God made man; he does not come to condemn, but to save; his is not a fleeting appearance, He comes to stay and give himself. In Him every wound is healed and every heart finds rest and peace. “The Christmas of the Lord is the Christmas of peace.”
I sincerely wish everyone a peaceful Christmas!
And, finally, Pope Leo, before the blessing, repeats the phrase
“Merry Christmas! May the peace of Christ reign in your hearts and in your families”, in ten different languages: Italian, French, English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Arabic, Chinese and Latin
