Pope urges the faithful to celebrate Christmas with simplicity

RELIGIONS NEWS AGENCY (REDNA) – On this Sunday, the fourth of Advent and Christmas Eve, Pope Francis urged the faithful at the end of the Angelus to be close at this time of celebration to the people in the world who suffer from war.

“Palestine, Israel, and Ukraine,” he said this morning from the window of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, are places that go towards Christmas without peace. Let us “also think of those who suffer from misery, from hunger, from slavery,” he said.

According to Vatican News Francis expressed hope that this may be a day lived “in prayer, in the warmth of affection, and in soberness. Let me make one recommendation: let us not confuse celebration with consumerism,” he explained.

Instead, for Christians, the path to follow this Christmas is that of simplicity, “without waste, and by sharing with those who lack necessities or lack companionship.”

The pontiff also urged the faithful to imitate God’s kindness, to think about everyone, especially “those who are marginalised” and “those who are far from the joy of Christmas these days.”

Lastly, the pope ended with two questions for the faithful: First, whether on this Christmas Eve, they want to leave each other “enveloped by the shadow of the Holy Spirit, by the gentleness and meekness of God, by the kindness of the God, making room for Him in my heart,” secondly; whether they could “be a refreshing shadow, a comforting friendship” for “lonely and needy people”.