The Christmas tree and Nativity scene are symbols of God’s love and hope, reminding us to contemplate the beauty of creation and welcome the marginalised, Pope Francis has said.
Baby Jesus, whose parents could find no decent shelter and had to flee persecution, is a reminder of the “painful experience” of so many migrants today, he said last Friday, just before the Vatican Christmas tree was lit and its Nativity scene unveiled.
Nativity scenes everywhere were “an invitation to make room in our life and society for God – hidden in the gaze of so many people” who were living in need, poverty or suffering, he told those donating the tree and Nativity scene for St Peter’s Square.
