Pope Leo XIV celebrated Holy Mass on Thursday for the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord in St. Peter’s Basilica. It was the first time a Pope had presided over this liturgical celebration on Christmas Day since 1994, when St. John Paul II did so. The Basilica was overflowing with the faithful, so many followed the Eucharist from St. Peter’s Square on giant screens.
The Holy Father wore the chasuble that Benedict XVI frequently used for Christmas celebrations, a detail that underscored the continuity with liturgical tradition. The homily, delivered with depth and warmth, focused on the mystery of the Incarnation and how God’s peace arises precisely from embracing human frailty.
Leo XIV reflected on the Word made flesh, manifested in the vulnerability of a newborn who can only cry. “Human flesh requires care, it asks for welcome and recognition, it seeks hands capable of tenderness and minds open to attention, it desires kind words,” the Pope affirmed. He recalled that Christmas awakens us from indifference and challenges us to listen to the cries of the most vulnerable, connecting this mystery with the current tragedies of the world.
The Pope specifically mentioned the wounds of conflict: the tents in Gaza exposed to the cold and rain, the displaced and homeless in the cities, and the young people sent to the front lines of wars, scarred by the senselessness and lies of the rhetoric. “Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tested by so many wars, both ongoing and concluded, leaving behind rubble and open wounds,” he declared.
Inspired by the teachings of his predecessor, Pope Francis, Leo XIV urged people not to maintain a “prudent distance” from the wounds of the Lord, but to touch the suffering flesh of others in order to experience the power of tenderness. “When the fragility of others pierces our hearts, when the pain of others shatters our firm certainties, then peace begins,” he said.
The central message of the homily was clear: “The peace of God is born from a sob received, from a cry heard; it is born amidst ruins that cry out for a new solidarity, it is born from dreams and visions that, like prophecies, reverse the course of history.” The Pope emphasized that the Church is not at the service of a domineering word, but of a presence that inspires good and promotes dialogue. “There will be peace when our monologues are interrupted and, enriched by listening, we fall to our knees before the naked flesh of others.”
He concluded by placing the Church under the guidance of the Virgin Mary, to learn that everything is reborn from the silent power of welcoming life. The celebration reaffirmed the Pope’s commitment to a missionary Church, one of tenderness and encounter, which transforms fragility into hope and listening into true peace.
This Christmas Day Mass, revived after decades, marked a significant moment in the pontificate of Leo XIV, who continues to emphasize human dignity, welcoming others, and caring for life in a world marked by conflict and inequality.