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(Vatican Radio) The lights on the Christmas tree and crib scene in St Peter’s Square were officially lit up during a ceremony on Friday. Standing 32 metres high, this year’s tree was donated by the German state of Bavaria whilst the crib scene with its 24 life-sized figures was donated by the Italian archdiocese of Trento.

In an earlier address to thank the Bavarian authorities and representatives from Trento for their donation, Pope Francis said the Christmas crib scene reminds us that Jesus made himself small like a child to touch our hearts with his humble goodness. Declaring that God doesn’t like the revolutions of the powerful, he spoke of how through his poverty Jesus gives a jolt to those who are scurrying to accumulate the false treasures of this world.

The Pope also said the nativity scene reveals how Jesus never imposes himself by force but came into this world in simplicity, humility and meekness.  The crib scene, he said, speaks to us of God’s tenderness and his divine mercy and how He wants to move our hearts. 

Standing at the base of the Christmas tree, the nativity scene is made up of 24 figures which were carved from wood grown in Trentino region of northern Italy and then painted. The scene includes one of the male figures bending to help an old man to symbolize the theme of mercy at the heart of this Jubilee year.

The Christmas tree in St Peter’s Square is adorned with particularly colourful decorations this year. The Vatican joined forces with the Lene Then Foundation, creating designs made by children suffering from cancer. The youngsters were asked to come up with designs that represent their dreams and wishes. 

Listen to this report by Susy Hodges:  

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday visited a new homeless shelter in Rome’s Termini – John Paul II train station, where he opened a Holy Door for the Jubilee of Mercy.

It was the fourth Holy Door opened in Rome, following the solemn opening of the Doors at St Peter’s Basilica and the Archbasilica of St John Lateran by Pope Francis. The Holy Door at St Paul’s Outside-the-Walls was opened by Cardinal James Harvey, the Archpriest of the Basilica. The fourth Papal Basilica, St Mary Major, will see its Holy Door opened by the Pope on the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God on January first.

The decision to open a special Holy Door of Charity at a homeless shelter is a unique feature of the extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, designed to emphasize the centrality of concrete works of charity in the life of the Church.

Following the opening of the Holy Door, Pope Francis celebrated Mass at the Centre.

Listen to Christopher Wells’ report:

During his homily the Pope spoke off the cuff stressing that Jesus was not born to a princess in a palace, but rather he came in humility to a simple young girl, living on the outskirts of the Roman Empire. Joseph too acted in humility, the Pope said, taking Mary as his wife, despite the gossip and slander surrounding her pregnancy.

In the same way today, the Pope continued, we won’t find God among the wealthy and powerful but rather we find him almost hidden away among the most needy, the sick, the hungry and those in prison.

You can’t pay your way to heaven, the Pope warned, adding that he opened the door of this homeless shelter in order to open the hearts of all the people of Rome. The way of salvation, he insisted, is not to be found through luxury, vanity, riches or power, but rather through the loving embrace and forgiveness of God.

While so many people, rejected by society, are helped by coming through this door, he said, may God give all of us the grace to feel rejected and understand that we too are in need of God’s mercy.

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Vatican City, Dec 18, 2015 / 11:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis greeted the donors of the Christmas tree and the Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square on Friday, recalling that Christ's birth in the manger shows that he never imposes himself upon us.

“He makes himself small, he becomes a child, to attract us with love, to touch our hearts with his humble goodness,” Pope Francis reflected Dec. 18 at the Vatican's Paul VI Hall.

“I give you my cordial welcome and thank you for the gift which you have prepared. They are very beautiful; and it gives me joy to think that they are not presented only to the Pope and to the pilgrims who will admire them, but above all to the Lord Jesus: for it is he whom we are celebrating!”

Pope Francis met with faithful from the Bavarian towns of Hirschau, Schnaittenbach, and Freudenberg, all in the Regensburg diocese, who donated the 105 foot Christmas tree adorning St. Peter's Square; and with the faithful of the Trento archdiocese, who donated the Nativity. He thanked by name Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg and Archbishop Luigi Bressan of Trent for their “courteous intentions and help” in the projects.

The Christmas tree was decorated by children suffering from cancer, who made designs based on their dreams and wishes. Pope Francis commented, “I would also like to thank the young 'artists' who have decorated the tree, and to congratulate them: you are still very young, but already your work is shown in St. Peter's Square! And it is beautiful. Have courage, go forward! Michelangelo began thus!”

He reflected that the children's desires “are now in the most suitable place, because they are close to the child of Bethlehem: they are entrusted to him, who came to live in our midst. Indeed, Jesus did not simply appear on earth, and did not dedicate just a little of his time to us, but rather came to share our life and to receive our desires, as he wanted and still wants to live here, along with us and for us. Our world, which at Christmas became his world, is important to him. The creche reminds us of this: God, in his great mercy, descended to us to stay with us.”

Pope Francis said the creche reminds us that Christ “is never imposed by force. Remember this well, you children and young people: the Lord never imposes upon us with force. To save us, he did not change history by performing a grandiose miracle. Rather he lived with simplicity, humility, meekness.”

“God does not like the dramatic revolutions of the powerful of history, and does not use a magic wand to change situations,” the Pope said. “Instead he makes himself small, he becomes a child, to attract us with love, to touch our hearts with his humble goodness, to draw attention through his poverty to those who worry about accumulating the false treasures of this world.”

Recalling that it was St. Francis of Assisi who began the tradition of setting up Nativity scenes, Pope Francis quoted the “Franciscan Sources,” which say the saint wished in doing so to “in some sense glimpse with the eyes of the body the hardships in which he lacked what is necessary for a newborn” and that in creches “we honor simplicity, exalt poverty, praise humility.”

“I invite you, then,” Pope Francis said, “to pause before the Nativity scene, for there God's tenderness speaks to us. There we contemplate divine mercy, made flesh so that we gaze tenderly upon it.”

“Above all, however, he wishes to move our hearts. It is beautiful that there is present in this creche a figure who immediately grasps the mystery of Christmas.”



"It is a person who performs a good act, stooping to assist an elderly person. He not only looks to God but also imitates him, as, like God, he inclines mercifully to one in need."

Pope Francis concluded: "May these gifts of yours, which will be lit up this evening, attract the gaze of many and above all revive in our life the true light of Christmas."

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Lincoln, Neb., Dec 18, 2015 / 01:32 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Diocese of Lincoln’s capital campaign has raised $62.5 million since early 2014 to help fund Catholic schools and parish projects, educate seminarians, support retired priests, and evangelize – nearly $10 million over its goal.

“This speaks to the faith and missionary spirit of the Catholics in our diocese – no matter the amount pledged, I know that Catholics have made sacrifices to support the mission of the Church,” Bishop James Conley said Dec. 17.

Bishop Conley said he was “deeply grateful” to God for the Joy of the Gospel campaign. It far exceeded its initial goal of $53 million.

“I hope that we can build on the success of this campaign, most especially by continuing to grow in faith and holiness.”

The bishop said it was most gratifying to see so many families contribute. More than 11,000 households, about 45 percent of Catholic households in the diocese, pledged a five-year gift.

Peter Hoskow, managing director of fundraising consultant Community Counseling Service, said the campaign was “among the most successful diocesan efforts” in U.S. Catholicism. Typical diocesan campaign participation is 20 to 25 percent. The average pledge amount was over $6,800, the highest average gift the consultant service had seen in its decades of operation.

The diocese’s 32 Catholic elementary and high schools will receive the largest portion of funds. Diocese spokesman J.D. Flynn said other funds will provide school grants for new programs, personnel needs, and “innovative approaches to Catholic education.”

St. Gregory the Great Seminary in Seward, 25 miles west of Lincoln, will use some of the funds to expand and to defray the costs of tuition. The diocese's minor seminary is presently at maximum capacity.

More than $10 million from the campaign will fund parish needs such as roofing projects, disability access, remodeling churches and parish halls, and programs of faith formation and evangelization.

The campaign’s support for diocesan pastoral outreach and evangelization will back a new pastoral plan, a staff director for Hispanic ministry, expanded prison ministry, online resources, and outreach to divorced Catholics.

“Pope Francis reminds us constantly to remember people on the margins,” Bishop Conley said.  “We need the Joy of the Gospel to reach people the Church might not otherwise impact.”

The campaign will also provide seed capital for the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture, an accredited educational effort for university students.

The bishop credited the drive’s success to the generosity of the laity and the hard work of diocese’s clergy, staff, and volunteers. He also credited the Virgin Mary, “the patroness of our diocese, who prays for the success of our ministry.”

Almost $1 million in pledges to the diocese came from 145 priests. Bishop Conley personally raised over $16.8 million in pledges.

About 86 percent of parishes met their fundraising goals. Six parishes joined diocesan needs and larger parish projects in “combined campaigns” that raised another $11 million not included in the diocesan total.

The bishop said the diocese is still working towards a sustainable financial model for ordinary operations.

“We have to continue to be good stewards, and to be supportive of the Church’s work,” he said. “But the campaign reminds us how many Catholics are willing to give generously to our mission.”

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IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring

By Carol Glatz

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Seeing baby Jesus in the Nativity scene reminds people that Christ uses humility and love to save the world, not impressive force or a magic wand, Pope Francis said.

"God does not love powerful people's imposing revolutions in history, and he doesn't use a magic wand for changing the situation," he said Dec. 18, meeting the people who donated the centerpieces of the Vatican Christmas decorations in St. Peter's Square.

"Instead, he makes himself small, he becomes a baby, in order to draw us in with love, in order to touch our hearts with his humble goodness, in order to shake up those who race to accumulate the false treasure of this world," he said.

The northern Italian province of Trent donated the life-sized Nativity scene, and three small towns in Germany's Bavaria region donated the 82-foot spruce fir. The tree was lit and the scene officially unveiled during an early evening ceremony in the square Dec. 18.

The painted ceramic tree ornaments were made by child cancer patients from a number of Italian hospitals.

The pope thanked the "tiny artists" who created the decorations and congratulated them for being so young and yet already having their art work showcased in St. Peter's Square.

"Keep going! That's how Michelangelo got his start," he said.

The birth of baby Jesus in Bethlehem shows that God didn't "simply appear on earth" just to come and go, but that "he came to share in our life and embrace our desires."

He came "because he wanted to and still wants to live here, together with us and for us," the pope said. "Because of his great mercy, he came down to us in order to stay permanently with us."

He asked the children always to remember that the Nativity scene also shows that God "does not impose with force."

"In order to save us, he didn't change history performing a grandiose miracle. Instead, he came with great simplicity, humility, meekness."

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