Before the final countdown to the New Year, Christians should take a moment to remember all God’s blessings of the past year and to reflect honestly on how they responded to those graces, Pope Leo XIV said.
Pope Leo XIV
Close to 3 million pilgrims and visitors attended audiences, liturgies, or meetings at the Vatican with Pope Leo XIV from the time of his election in May through December, according to the Prefecture of the Papal Household.
Thousands of young voices joined together in hearty chants of “Leo! Leo! We love Leo!” following Pope Leo XIV’s first live digital encounter with the youth of the United States this November. As an onstage participant in the encounter, St. Rita Catholic Church parishioner Rebekah Billmeier had a “front row” seat to the stirring moment of Church history.
Father Paolo Capra described the moment as fleeting but profoundly significant. On Nov. 28, he was standing at the door of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul with a brick in his hands. Then, Pope Leo XIV emerged and blessed the piece.
Jesus entering the world as a little baby in need of everything is a sign of God’s solidarity with every person in need, longing for love and a helping hand, Pope Leo XIV said at Christmas morning Mass.
Pope Leo XIV asked children to pray in front of their Nativity scenes this Christmas and, especially, to pray “that all the world’s children may live in peace.”
In today’s fast-paced world with pressures for results and efficiency, Pope Leo XIV said many have been stripped of their serenity and ability to live.
The Nativity scene and the Christmas tree are signs of faith and hope, Pope Leo XIV said.
Even in difficult situations and harsh places, like prisons, when people focus on caring for one another, respecting each other, and offering forgiveness, “beautiful flowers spring forth from the ‘hard ground’ of sin and suffering,” Pope Leo XIV said.
Condemning the attack on Jews celebrating Hanukkah in Sydney, Pope Leo XIV said, “Enough with these forms of antisemitic violence! We must eradicate hatred from our hearts.”