CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- While hope can often be viewed as the desire for things out of our reach, Pope Francis has said that the birth of Jesus offers us a new kind hope \u2013 one which, thanks to the Incarnation, is attainable and leads to a different goal.<\/p>\n\u201cWhen we speak of hope, we often refer to that which man is not able to do and that which is not visible. In effect, what we hope for goes beyond our strength and gaze,\u201d the Pope said Dec. 21.<\/p>\n
However, the birth of Christ \u201cspeaks of a different hope, a trustworthy, visible and understandable hope, because it is founded on God.\u201d<\/p>\n
In becoming man, Jesus enters the world and gives humanity the strength to walk with him and to live the present moment \u201cin a new way,\u201d even if it\u2019s sometimes tiring, he said.<\/p>\n
For a Christian, then, hope means the certainty \u201cof being on a journey with Christ toward the Father who awaits us,\u201d Francis said, adding that this hope \u201coffers a goal, a good destiny in the present, the salvation of humanity, the beatitude of those who entrust themselves to the merciful God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHope never stops, it\u2019s always on a journey and it makes us walk forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pope Francis spoke to pilgrims in the Vatican\u2019s Paul VI Hall during his last general audience before Christmas, continuing his new catechesis on Christian hope.<\/p>\n
Through Christ\u2019s birth \u201chope entered the world,\u201d he said, explaining that the true meaning of Christmas is found in the act of God fulfilling his promise of salvation in becoming man. God \u201cdoesn\u2019t abandon his people,\u201d but \u201cdraws near to the point of shedding his divinity.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn this way God demonstrates his fidelity and inaugurates a new kingdom, which gives a new hope to humanity: eternal life,\u201d the Pope said, asking pilgrims whether they walk along the path of hope, or if instead they close their hearts and cease to move forward.<\/p>\n
As the season of Advent comes to an end, reflecting on the Nativity scene is a key way to contemplate this hope, he said, because in its simplicity, \u201cthe nativity transmits hope; each one of the figures is immersed in this atmosphere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pointing to the place where Jesus was born, Francis noted that Bethlehem was the small village where a thousand years before Jesus, David, a shepherd, was chosen to become the king of Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cBethlehem is not a capital, and because of this it is preferred by divine providence, which loves to act through the small and the humble,\u201d he said, noting that it is in this small village where Jesus, \u201cin whom the hope of God and the hope of man meet,\u201d is born.<\/p>\n
Francis then turned to Mary, \u201cthe mother of hope,\u201d explaining that with her \u201cyes,\u201d she was able to open to God the door of our world, and she did it as a young girl whose heart was \u201cfull of hope, totally animated by faith\u201d and who believed in God\u2019s word.<\/p>\n
Turning to St. Joseph, Pope Francis said he was a man who also believed in the World of God that was spoken to him through the angel, and who not only stood at Mary\u2019s side, but obeyed God in giving Jesus his name.<\/p>\n
In the name Jesus \u201cthere is hope for every man, because through that son of a woman, God will save humanity from the death of sin,\u201d the Pope said, noting \u201chow much hope there is\u201d in the scene of Christ\u2019s birth.<\/p>\n
He then pointed to the image of the shepherds, who represent the \u201chumble and poor\u201d people awaiting the salvation of the Messiah.<\/p>\n
When they come to the Child Jesus, \u201cthey see the realization of the promise and hope that the salvation of God finally comes for each one of them,\u201d Francis said. They not only trust in God, but \u201cthey hope in him and they rejoice when they recognize in that child the sign indicated by the angels.\u201d<\/p>\n
Turning to the choir of angels who appeared to the shepherds, the Pope said that their proclamation of \u201cglory to God in the highest\u201d is the announcement of hope, because \u201cChristian hope is expressed in praise of God, who inaugurated his kingdom of love, justice and peace.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pope Francis closed his speech reiterating the importance of contemplating the Nativity scene as Christmas approaches, because in doing so, \u201cwe prepare for the birth of the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will truly be a celebration if we welcome Jesus, seed of hope that God plants in the furrows of our personal and communitarian lives,\u201d he said, adding that \u201ceach \u2018yes\u2019 to Jesus is a seed of hope.\u201d<\/p>\n
After his catechesis, the Pope made another appeal for a peaceful resolution to political conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by extending \u201ca heartfelt appeal to all Congolese so that, in this delicate moment in their history, they are artesians of peace and reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n
The DRC for the past few months has been entangled in a political headlock as the country\u2019s president, Joseph Kabila, approached the end of his final term in office Dec. 19.<\/p>\n
However, the elections for a new leader, originally scheduled to take place in November, were never organized, and according to a deal struck between Kabila and an opposition faction in October, the president is allowed to stay in power until official polls are held.<\/p>\n
The polls are tentatively set for April 2018, however, many parties in opposition to Kabila\u2019s government oppose the deal, and are calling for the president to step down and schedule the elections for 2017.<\/p>\n
As tensions mount, fears are also increasing that there will be a repeat of a Sept. 19 demonstration by one of the opposition groups turned violent, leading to the death of more than 50 people in just two days.<\/p>\n
Catholic bishop in the country have intervened in negotiations in hopes that a crisis might be averted with Kabila\u2019s term ends. Both the president and vice-present of the Congolese Bishops Conference had a recent meeting with Pope Francis in which they discussed the crisis.<\/p>\n
In his appeal, the Pope asked that those who have political responsibility would \u201clisten to the voice of their own conscience, knowing how to see the cruel sufferings of their countrymen and have the common good at heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
He assured of his prayer and support for the country, and invited the people to let themselves be guided \u201cby the light of the Redeemer of the world,\u201d praying that the birth of the Lord at Christmas \u201copens paths of hope.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Vatican City, Dec 21, 2016 \/ 03:13 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- While hope can often be viewed as the desire for things out of our reach, Pope Francis has said that the birth of Jesus offers us a new kind hope – one which, thanks to the Incarnation, is a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\n
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