(Vatican Radio) With the touch of a button and using a tablet, Pope Francis on Sunday evening switched on a giant Christmas tree designed in lights on a hillside above the Umbrian town of Gubbio in Italy. The lighting ceremony came after he delivered a message via video link up from the Vatican.
The Pope was following in the footsteps of Pope Benedict in 2011 and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.
The tree created in one thousand coloured lights was recorded in the Guinness Book of Records in 1991 as being the largest Christmas tree in the world, measuring about 750 metres tall by 450 metres wide.
See below an English language translation of the Pope’s message.
Good evening, I wish you a happy and holy Christmas.
In switching on the light of the Nativity scene, we wish for the light of Christ to be in us. A Christmas without light is not Christmas. Let there be light in the soul, in the heart; let there be forgiveness to others; let there be no hostilities, which are dark. Let there be the beautiful light of Jesus. This is my wish for all of you, when you turn on the light of the crib. Many thanks for your gift, it is beautiful. Also I give to you my warmest wishes, peace and happiness. If you have something dark in your soul, ask the Lord for forgiveness. Christmas is a great opportunity to cleanse the soul, eh! Do not fear, the priest is merciful, forgiving all in the name of God, because God forgives everything. let light be in your hearts, in your families, in your cities. And now, with this wish, turn on the light.
Blessed be God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Merry Christmas and pray for me.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) With the touch of a button and using a tablet, Pope Francis on Sunday evening switched on a giant Christmas tree designed in lights on a hillside above the Umbrian town of Gubbio in Italy. The lighting ceremony came after he delivered a message via video link up from the Vatican. The Pope…
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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis during the Angelus from the window of his studio above St Peter’s Square recalled the second Sunday of Advent saying that it was a wonderful time “that awakens in us the expectation of Christ’s return and the memory of his historic coming.”
Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s report
Focusing on the day’s liturgy the Holy Father said that it presents us with a hopeful message. Quoting from the Book of Isaiah “Comfort, give comfort to my people, the Pope explained this reading is about a time of joyful liberation and salvation, and a time of looking ahead with confidence to the future
He went on to say that Isaiah refers to people who went through a dark period, but now the time for comfort has come.
Sadness and fear give way to joy, said Pope Francis because the Lord himself leads his people to the path of liberation and salvation.
But, the Pope also underlined that we cannot be messengers of God’s comfort if we do not experience the joy of being comforted and loved by Him.
This, he said, is especially the case when we listen to the Gospel, that people, the Holy Father stressed, need to carry in their pocket.
Pope Francis noted that Isaiah’s message of comfort, that resounds on this second Sunday of Advent, is a balm on our wounds and an incentive to diligently prepare the way of the Lord.
Many situations, said the Pope, require our comforting witness. “I am thinking about those who are oppressed by suffering, injustice and oppression, about those who are slaves to money, power, success, and worldliness. We are all called to console our brothers, testifying that only God can eliminate the causes of existential and spiritual dramas.”
This prophet, he continued, speaks to our hearts today to tell us that God forgets our sins and comforts us if we entrust ourselves to Him a with humble and repentant heart. God, said Pope Francis,”will bring down the walls of evil, will fill the holes of our omissions, will flatten the bumps of pride and vanity, and will pave the way for our meeting with him.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis during the Angelus from the window of his studio above St Peter’s Square recalled the second Sunday of Advent saying that it was a wonderful time “that awakens in us the expectation of Christ’s return and the memory of his historic coming.” Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s report Focusing on the day’s…
Read more