“The Nativity Scene is the suggestive place where we contemplate Jesus , who having assumed our wretchedness , invites us to do likewise through our acts of mercy .” Pope Francis made the reflection on Thursday while thanking all those who donated this year’s Nativity Scene on the theme of works of mercy and the 28 meter tall Christmas tree set up in the centre of St. Peter’s Square in Rome. The Pope wished that the birth of the Lord be an occasion for all to be attentive to the needs of the poor and all those who like Jesus don’t’ find anyone to welcome them.
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The Pope met some 4000 people of various donor delegations at the Vatican’s audience hall. They represented the southern Italian Benedictine Abbey of Montevergine that donated the Nativity Scene, Poland’s Warmia Archdiocese and Elk Diocese that donated the red fir tree and children undergoing cancer treatment in various Italian hospitals who made the various decorations.
Commenting on the Christmas tree, the Pope said it is a sign of the faith of the Polish people and the expression of their fidelity to the see of Peter. Thanking the children he said they have conveyed to Jesus their dreams and desires through their decorations which, he said, will be admired by pilgrims from all over the world.
Message of Crib, Christmas tree
The Pope said that each year the Christmas Crib and the Christmas tree become a symbol of the compassion of the heavenly Father , and his participation and closeness with humanity that feels it is not abandoned in the night of the times but is visited and accompanied amidst its difficulties.
The tree pointing up, he said, urges us to stretch out “towards the highest gifts”, and rise above the mist that clouds, to feel how beautiful and joyous it is to be immersed in the light of Christ . In the simplicity of the crib we meet and contemplate the tenderness of God , manifested in that of the Child Jesus.
St. Peter’s Christmas Crib and Christmas tree were to be inaugurated later on Thursday.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met on Thursday with the new president of the Lutheran World Federation , Nigerian Archbishop Musa Panti Filibus, focusing on common prayer as the key to Christian unity .
Recalling his own visit to the Swedish cities of Lund and Malmo last year for the shared commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation , the pope said praying together purifies, strengthens and lights our way forward. Prayer, he insisted, is the fuel for our ecumenical journey.
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Through prayer, the pope continued, we are able to see the painful divisions of past ceneturies in a new light, abandoning our prejudices, purifying our memories and looking to the future with confidence. Through prayer, he said, we are called to recognize the gifts of our different traditions and receive them as our shared Christian heritage.
Reformation anniversary ‘a turning point’
In his words to Pope Francis, Archbishop Musa also gave thanks for the past 50 years of progress ‘from conflict to communion’, acknowledging in a special way the importance of praying together to commemorate the Reformation anniversary.
“ Your presence and participation in the Joint Commemoration of the Reformation in Lund was a precious gift for us. It marked the significant turning point at which Catholics and Lutherans are today ”.
Concrete steps to unity
Before praying the Our Father together, Pope Francis urged the Lutheran delegation, including the seven regional vice-presidents, to continue on the road to full unity, never giving in to the temptations to become tired, lazy or fearful. Good ideas are not enough, he said, but instead we must take concrete steps and hold out hour hands, working together to support the poorest and most needy as we witness together to the presence of God in our world.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Franci s has urged members of the National Council of Churches of Taiwan to continue in their work to educate young generations “in the art of dialogue, so that they can become protagonists of a much-needed culture of harmony and reconciliation”.
The Pope was addressing a Delegation of the Council whom he received in audience in the Vatican.
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The Council
The ecumenical Council, founded in 1991, aims to achieve full Christian unity by strengthening the relationship of churches, promoting cooperation, charitable works and education as well as proclaiming the Christian message, and participating in the common mission of the church to the world.
Recent visit to Asia
To the Delegation gathered in the Vatican’s Consistory Hall Pope Francis spoke of his recent visit to Myanmar and Bangladesh where, he said, he experienced both the vitality and enterprise of the people, but also the suffering face of a humanity all too often deprived of material prosperity and social well-being.
He highlighted the good works of the Council and expressed his deep belief that as Christians we are called to work together to promote the dignity of each human being.
Commitment to promote Christian unity
He thanked those present for their commitment to promote greater unity between believers in the Lord and said that the strengthening of relations between the Christian confessions, and the shared proclamation of Jesus, also through works of charity and educational projects aimed at the young, will prove beneficial to society as a whole.
Educating the young generations
“Building a better future for all, Francis said, requires, in a particular way, educating the younger generations in the art of dialogue, so that they can become protagonists of a much-needed culture of harmony and reconciliation. This will encourage them to pursue, with God’s help, the path that leads from conflict to communion, a path that has shown itself so fruitful in the ecumenical journey”.
The Pope concluded his discourse encouraging all to continue to journey together in the primacy of charity towards full Christian unity.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Franci s on Wednesday reflected on his just-ended apostolic journey to Myanmar and Bangladesh highlighting the value of interreligious dialogue undertaken in the first leg of the journey, and expressing solidarity with Bangladesh’s efforts to provide relief to the Rohingya refugees flooding into the nation during the second leg of his visit.
The Pope was addressing pilgrims gathered in the Paul VI Hall for the weekly General Audience .
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Journey to Myanmar and Bangladesh gift from God
Interrupting briefly his series of catechetical reflections on the Sacraments, Pope Francis told those present that he wished to speak of the apostolic journey that took him to Myanmar and Bangladesh in the past days describing it as a great gift from God.
Noting that for the first time ever the successor of Peter was able to set foot on Myanmar soil, he spoke of witnessing a nation that is gradually moving towards a new experience of freedom and peace.
Importance of interreligious dialogue in Buddhist Myanmar
He recalled some of the highlights of the visit including a meeting with young people and an open air Mass in Yangon, and he remarked on his encounter with interreligious leaders in that predominantly Buddhist country where he was able to express the importance of dialogue and cooperation in the building of a society in which everyone, with the exclusion of none, is accepted and respected.
Christian Muslim dialogue in Bangladesh
And then he spoke of his time in Bangladesh in the footsteps of Popes Paul VI and Saint John Paul II. In this nation of Muslim majority, he said, it represented yet “another step forward in favour of respect and dialogue between Christians and Muslims”.
Solidarity with Rohingya refugees
He also spoke of his opportunity, whilst he was in Bangladesh, to express solidarity with the country’s efforts to provide relief and assistance amid the crisis of the Rohingya refugees.
Pope Francis mentioned the joy expressed during his final Mass celebrated with young people in Dhaka which, he said, was attended also by young followers of Islam and other religions.
Sign of hope for Asia
“In this way, the Pope concluded, my Pastoral Visit ended in a sign of hope for Bangladaesh, for all of Asia, and for the whole world”.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis before his General Audience on Wednesday, greeted a Palestinian delegation hosted by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
Speaking to those gathered, the Pope told them that it was his hope “that your consultations may help to open a space of sincere dialogue for the benefit of all the members of Palestinian society, and the Christian community in particular, given its small numbers and the challenges it faces, especially with regard to emigration.”
The Holy Father emphasized that, “for the Catholic Church, it is always a joy to build bridges of dialogue with communities , individuals and organizations, adding that it was a particular joy to do so with Palestinian religious and intellectual leaders.”
Dialogue , said the Pope, “takes place at every level: with ourselves through reflection and prayer, in our families, in our religious communities, between different religious communities, and also in civil society.”
He noted that the primary condition of that dialogue was “reciprocal respect and a commitment to strengthening that respect, for the sake of recognizing the rights of all people, wherever they happen to be.”
The Pope remarked that The Holy Land was for Christians “the land par excellence of dialogue between God and mankind.” He also highlighted the fact that the culmination of this dialogue took place in Nazareth between the Angel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary.
The Holy Father went on to say, “that dialogue continues in a unique way between Jesus and his people, in representation of humanity as a whole.”
Concluding his greeting, Pope Francis recalled the “kindness that the Authorities of the State of Palestine, who he said, “have shown to the Christian community, acknowledging its place and its role in Palestinian society.”
(from Vatican Radio)…