Pope encourages meditation on the meaning of Christmas

Published: 2004-01-05

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Greeting thousands of people gathered around the Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square, Pope John Paul II encouraged people to silently look at the statue of the baby in the manger and think about the meaning of Christ's birth. In frigid temperatures under a sunny sky, the visitors gathered Jan. 4 for the recitation of the midday Angelus prayer. In his Angelus address, the pope spoke about a verse from the Gospel of St. John: "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." In his Gospel, St. John focuses on "the divine origin of Christ," yet at the same time "he forcefully insists on the reality of his incarnation," the pope said. "Yes, Jesus is true God and true man," Pope John Paul said. "He is the only-begotten Son of God whom John and the other Apostles saw, heard and touched." The "mystery of the baby of Bethlehem" is the mystery of the face of God revealed to all humanity, the pope said.

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