At Christmas, God ‘shuffles the deck,’ Pope says in Angelus address
December 21, 2015
Reflecting on St. Elizabeth’s astonishment at the Blessed Virgin Mary’s visit (Lk. 1:39-45), Pope Francis said in his December 20 Angelus address that “to celebrate Christmas well, we are called to spend time in the ‘places’ of astonishment”: “the other,” history, and the Church.
In “the other,” the Pope said, we “recognize a brother, because since the birth of Jesus, every face is marked with a similarity to the Son of God. Above all when it is the face of a poor person, because as a poor man, God entered the world, and it was the poor, in the first place, that he allowed to approach him.”
The second place of wonder, he continued, is history. “We risk reading it backwards: it happens, for example, when history seems to us to be determined by the market economy, regulated by finance and business, dominated by the powers that be,” Pope Francis said to the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square. “The God of Christmas is rather a God who ‘shuffles the deck’-- He likes to do it, eh?-- as Mary sings in the Magnificat.”
To look on the Church “with the wonder of faith means not just considering the Church only as a religious institution-- which the Church is-- but to feel that she is a mother who, despite her warts and wrinkles-- we have so many!-- lets the contours of the bride beloved of and purified by Christ the Lord shine through,” the Pope continued.
He added:
A Church that knows how to recognize herself in the many signs of faithful love that God continuously sends her. A Church whereby the Lord Jesus will never be a possession to be zealously defended; those who do this are erroneous … The Church that calls to the Lord, “Come Lord Jesus.” The Mother Church that always has the doors open, and her arms open to welcome everyone. Even more, Mother Church goes out from her own doors to seek, with the smile of a Mother, all of those who are far away and bring them to the mercy of God. This is the wonder of Christmas.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
Further information:
- Angelus Domini 2015.12.20 (YouTube Vatican)
- Le parole del Papa alla recita dell’Angelus, 20.12.2015 (Holy See Press Office)
- ANGELUS ADDRESS: On the Wonder of Christmas (Zenit)
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
