Pope Francis’s Christmas homily: ‘Tonight, God draws near to you because you are important to him’
December 24, 2022
On Christmas Eve, Pope Francis presided at the Christmas Mass during the Night in St. Peter’s Basilica (video, booklet).
Pope Francis preached the homily; Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the Dean of the College of Cardinals, was the principal celebrant.
“Dear brother, dear sister, tonight God is drawing near to you, because you are important to him,” Pope Francis began. “From the manger, as food for your life, he tells you: ‘If you feel consumed by events, if you are devoured by a sense of guilt and inadequacy, if you hunger for justice, I, your God, am with you.’“
“He who lay naked in the manger and hung naked on the cross, asks us for truth, he asks us to go to the bare reality of things, and to lay at the foot of the manger all our excuses, our justifications and our hypocrisies,” the Pope added. “Tenderly wrapped in swaddling clothes by Mary, he wants us to be clothed in love.”
For all current news, visit our News home page.
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!
