El Papa Francisco presidió a las 21:30 h de Roma, en la Basílica de San Pedro del Vaticano, la Santa Misa de la Noche del Nacimiento del Señor. En la homilía recordó el auténtico sentido de la Navidad: "hoy ha nacido el Hijo de Dios: todo cambia. El Salvador del mundo viene a compartir nuestra naturaleza humana, no estamos ya solos ni abandonados".
Full text of the homily of Pope Francis at the Holy Mass on Christmas Eve:
On this night a “great light” shines (Is 9:1); The light of the birth of Jesus shines on us. How current and true are the words of the prophet Isaiah, which we have just heard: "You have increased joy, you have increased joy" (Is 9:2). Our hearts were already full of joy as we waited for this moment; Now, that feeling has increased to overflowing, because the promise has been fulfilled, it has finally been realized. Joy and gladness assure us that the message contained in tonight's mystery truly comes from God. There is no room for doubt; Let us leave it to the skeptics who, by questioning reason alone, never find the truth. There is no room for indifference, which takes over the heart of those who do not know how to love, because they are afraid of losing something. Sadness is cast out, because the Child Jesus is the true comforter of the heart.
Today the Son of God was born: everything changes. The Savior of the world comes to share our human nature, we are no longer alone or abandoned. The Virgin offers us her Son as the beginning of new life. The true light comes to illuminate our existence, often confined under the shadow of sin. Today we discover again who we are. On this night we are shown clearly the path to follow to reach the goal. Now fear and trepidation must cease, because the light shows us the way to Bethlehem. We cannot remain helpless. It's not fair that we are standing still. We must go and see our Savior lying in the manger. This is the reason for joy and happiness: this Child “was born for us”, “was given to us”, as Isaiah announces (cf. 9:5). The people who have traveled all the roads of the world for two thousand years, so that all men may share this joy, are entrusted with the mission of making the "Prince of Peace" known and being his effective instrument among the nations.
When we hear about the birth of Christ, let us be silent and let that Child speak to us; Let us engrave his words in our hearts without taking our eyes off his face. If we take him in our arms and let him embrace us, he will give us the peace of heart that knows no end. This Child teaches us what is truly important in our lives. He is born into the poverty of the world, because there is no place in the inn for Him and His family. He finds shelter and protection in a stable and comes lying in an animal manger. And yet, from this nothingness springs the light of the glory of God. From here, the path of true liberation and perpetual rescue begins for simple-hearted men. From this Child, who bears the traits of goodness, mercy and love of God the Father engraved on his face, springs for all of us his disciples, as the apostle Paul teaches, the commitment to "renounce ungodliness" and the riches of the world, to live a "sober, just and pious" life (Tt 2:12).
In a society frequently intoxicated with consumption and pleasures, abundance and luxury, appearance and narcissism, He calls us to have a sober behavior, that is, simple, balanced, linear, capable of understanding and living what is important. In a world, often harsh on the sinner and lenient on sin, it is necessary to cultivate a strong sense of justice, of seeking and putting into practice the will of God. Faced with a culture of indifference, which often ends up being ruthless, our lifestyle must be full of piety, empathy, compassion, mercy, which we draw every day from the well of prayer.
That, like that of the shepherds of Bethlehem, our eyes are filled with wonder and wonder when we contemplate in the Child Jesus the Son of God. And may the invocation sprout from our hearts before Him: "Show us, Lord, your mercy and grant us your salvation" (Ps 85,8).
January 26, 2022