On Christmas Eve, Pope Francis calls for courage to improve the world

By Joshua McElwee

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis said the story of Jesus’ birth to a poor carpenter should inspire hope that all people can make a difference in the world, as the pope led the world’s Catholics in Christmas on Tuesday.

Francis, celebrating the 12th Christmas of his pontificate, presided over a solemn Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and opened the Catholic holy year of 2025, which the Vatican says will bring about 32 million tourists to Rome next year.

In a homily on the virtue of hope, which is also the theme of the Holy Year, the Pope said that hope is “an invitation not to hesitate, not to allow ourselves to be held back by our old habits or to wallow in mediocrity or laziness.” .

“Hope calls us to be upset about things that are wrong and find the courage to change them,” he said.

A Catholic Holy Year, also called an anniversary, is considered a time of peace, forgiveness and forgiveness. They usually occur every 25 years. Pilgrims who come to Rome during the year can receive special indulgences or forgiveness of their sins. This anniversary runs until January 6, 2026.

At the start of Tuesday’s ceremony, Francis oversaw the opening of a special bronze-paneled “Holy Door” in St. Peter’s Basilica, which is open only during the jubilee years. The Vatican expects up to 100,000 pilgrims to walk through the doors every day next year.

At the papal mass before an estimated 6,000 people in St. Peter’s Basilica and 25,000 more watching on screens in the square outside, the pope also repeated an earlier call for developed countries to use the anniversary to reduce the debt burden of low-income countries.

“The anniversary calls us to spiritual renewal and commits us to transforming our world,” the pope said. “A time of rejoicing for poorer countries burdened with unwarranted debts; a time of rejoicing for all who are in bondage to old and new forms of slavery.”

A call for direct debt relief from the late Pope John Paul II in the anniversary year of 2000 sparked a campaign that resulted in $130 billion in debt relief between 2000 and 2015.

Francis, who turned 88 this month, is suffering from what the Vatican calls a cold. He was in good form on Tuesday evening, although his voice was a bit hoarse.

On Wednesday, the Pope will deliver his Christmas Day message and blessing, “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world).

(Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Editing by Barbara Lewis)