January 7, 2024 - "The Holy Father's Christmas Message 2023"

I have been really struck by the words of the Holy Father in his “Urbi et Orbi” message on Christmas Day. “Urbi et Orbi” is a Latin phrase that means “to the City [of Rome] and to the World. The phrase refers to a papal address and apostolic blessing given on certain solemn occasions (such as Christmas).
 
I am going to present part of the address this week and the rest of it next week.
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Merry Christmas!
 
The eyes and the hearts of Christians throughout the world turn to Bethlehem; in those days, it is a place of sorrow and silence, it was there that a long-awaited message was first proclaimed: “To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” {Luke 2:11). Those words spoken by the Angel in the heavens above Bethlehem are also spoken to us. We are full of hope and trust as we realize that the Lord has been born for us; that the eternal Word of the father, the infinite God, has made his home among us. He became flesh; he came “to dwell among us” (John 1:14). This is the good news that changed the course of history!
 
The message of Bethlehem is indeed “good news of great joy” (Luke 2:10). What kind of joy? Not the passing happiness of this world, not the glee of entertainment but a joy that is “great” because it makes us great. For today all of us, with all of our shortcomings, embrace the sure promise of an unprecedented gift: hope of being born for heaven. Yes, Jesus our brother has come to make his Father our Father; a small child called, he reveals to us the tender love of God, and much more. He, the Only-Begotten Son of the Father, gives us “power to become children of God” (John 1:12).  This is a joy that consoles hearts, renews hope and bestows peace. It is the joy of the Holy Spirit: the joy born of being God's beloved sons and daughters.
 
Brothers and sisters, today in Bethlehem, amid the deep shadows covering the land, an undying flame has been lighted. Today the world's darkness has been overcome by the light of God, which “enlightens every man and woman” (John 1:9). Brothers and sisters, let us exalt in this gift of grace! Rejoice, you who have lost confidence in your certitudes, for you are not alone: Christ is born for you! Rejoice, you have abandoned all hope, for God offers you his outstretched hand; he does not point a finger at you, but offers you his little baby hand, in order to set you free from your fears, to relieve you of your burdens and to show you that, in his eyes, you are more valuable than anything else. Rejoice you who find no piece of heart, for the ancient prophecy of Isaiah has been fulfilled for your sake: “a child has been born for us, a son given to us, and he is named... Prince of Peace” (9: 6). Scripture reveals that this that his peace, his kingdom,” will have no end” (9:7).
 
In the Scriptures, the Prince of Peace is opposed by the “Prince of this world” (John 12: 31), who, by sowing the seeds of death, plots against the Lord, the “lover of life” (cf. Wisdom 11: 26). We see this played out in Bethlehem, where the birth of the savior is followed by the slaughter of the innocents. How many innocents are being slaughtered in our world! In their mothers’ wombs, in odysseys undertaken in desperation and in search of hope, in the lives of all those little ones whose childhood has been devastated by war. They are the little Jesuses of today, these little ones whose childhood has been devastated by war.
 
To be continued next week.
 
Father John