Pope Leo XIV’s Christmas homily in St. Peter’s Basilica urges recognition of God’s light in the vulnerable newborn Jesus, calling for room in hearts for the poor and strangers.
Newsroom (26/12/2025 Gaudium Press) In the majestic setting of St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Leo XIV presided over the solemn Midnight Mass for the Nativity of the Lord on Christmas Eve, delivering a profound homily that centered on the incarnate Christ as the definitive light piercing humanity’s enduring darkness.
Before entering the basilica for the liturgy, the Holy Father paused to greet the thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square, who followed the celebration on large screens despite inclement weather. Speaking in multiple languages, Pope Leo XIV extended a warm welcome: “Buonasera. Benvenuti tutti! Bienvenidos! Welcome!” He expressed admiration for their perseverance, thanking them for braving the conditions to unite in celebrating Christmas together. “Jesus Christ, who was born for us, brings us peace and God’s love,” he said, before imparting his blessing and Christmas greetings.
Inside the basilica, addressing the congregation of cardinals, bishops, priests, religious, and lay faithful, Pope Leo XIV reflected on humanity’s ancient quest for meaning in the stars. For millennia, he noted, peoples have named constellations and sought truths in the heavens, yet often remained confounded. On this holy night, however, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined” (Is 9:2).
This light, the Pope emphasized, is no distant celestial body but a newborn child: “To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord” (Lk 2:11). Jesus, Emmanuel—God with us—enters history in vulnerability, illuminating every darkness with the promise of eternal life. There is no shadow this divine light cannot reach, he declared, as it reveals the dawn of salvation for all humanity.
The Pontiff drew attention to the humility of the Nativity scene: the Savior is found not by gazing upward but by bending low, in a stable, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger (Lk 2:12). In this powerless infant, God’s omnipotence shines; in the child’s cry, the eternal Word speaks; in the fragile body, the Spirit’s holiness gleams. By sharing human frailty, the Son of God affirms the sacredness of every new life and calls believers to recognize divinity reflected in each person.
Quoting his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Leo XIV warned that where there is no room for God, there is none for the human person—especially children, the poor, and strangers. Conversely, welcoming the vulnerable opens space for the divine; even a humble stable can surpass a grand temple in sanctity.
Marveling at the “wisdom of Christmas,” the Holy Father described God’s gift not as abstract solutions but as a personal love story. In response to human suffering, oppression, and distorted economies that commodify people, God becomes man to restore infinite dignity and liberate from slavery. Echoing St. Augustine, he observed that only divine humility could lift humanity from the weight of pride.
Above the Bethlehem stable, the Pope continued, the heavens host not warriors but a multitude of angels singing of glory and peace (Lk 2:13-14). This peace flows from Christ’s heart, binding heaven and earth.
Reflecting on the closing Jubilee Year, Pope Leo XIV recalled Pope Francis’s words from the previous Christmas: the Nativity rekindles the task of bringing hope where it is lost. Christmas, he said, invites gratitude for God’s gift and a mission to proclaim it, as urged in Psalm 96: “Tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations.”
Contemplation of the Word made flesh, the Pontiff concluded, inspires the Church to announce Christmas as a feast of faith (God becoming man), charity (self-giving love), and hope (the Child as messenger of peace). With these virtues, believers can fearlessly emerge from night into the new day’s dawn.
The Midnight Mass, rich in ancient ritual and choral splendor, underscored the universal message of Christmas: in the vulnerability of the Christ Child, humanity encounters the light that redeems and transforms the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9sjYOx59rg
- Raju hasmukh with files from vatican.va
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