Pope Francis said: “History does not determine Christ’s birth; rather, his coming into the world enables history to attain its fullness. The birth of the Son of God inaugurates a new era, a new computation of time, the era which witnesses the fulfilment of the ancient promise.
“The fullness of time, then, is the presence of God Himself in our history. Now we can see His glory, which shines forth in the poverty of a stable; we can be encouraged and sustained by His Word, made ‘little’ in a baby. Thanks to Him, our time can find its fullness. The use of our personal time can also find its fullness in the encounter with Jesus Christ, God made man. A torrent of misery, swollen by sin, seems to contradict the fullness of time brought by Christ.
“Yet this swollen torrent is powerless before the ocean of mercy which floods our world. All of us are called to immerse ourselves in this ocean, to let ourselves be reborn, to overcome the indifference that blocks solidarity, and leave behind the false neutrality that prevents sharing.”
New drunk-driving law endangers priests
Celebrating Mass can land Uruguay priests in trouble with the law after the country’s drunk-driving laws were changed. The new law has reduced the legal blood alcohol level to 0.0 per cent. This means that priests who drive after offering Mass may face penalties.
Killing of Christians by IS is genocide – Clinton
Former US Secretary of State and Democrat presidential hopeful Hilary Clinton said she now believes that Islamic State’s killing of Christians in Syria and Iraq should be labelled a genocide.
IS “deliberately aimed at destroying not only the lives, but wiping out the existence of Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East territory it controlled,” she said.
Patriarch criticises US policy in Middle East
Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Yonan, head of the Syriac Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic church in full communion with the Holy See, told The National Catholic Register that “the Obama administration has done very little towards the faith and the survival of Christian minorities in the Middle East.
“So we beg Western countries to stand up for our lives; and that means telling governments, and those who are either religious leaders in Islam or in Arabic governments, to grant full rights and liberties to all citizens, including minorities, particularly the Christian minority as well,” said the patriarch.
Boycott the World Cup
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne, Germany, suggested boycotting the 2022 football World Cup in Qatar as a means of protesting that country’s treatment of migrants.
Woelki accused the Qatari government of treating migrants “like animals”. He said migrants were promised good jobs in Qatar but instead they are subjected to inadequate housing, unsafe working conditions and humiliating treatment.
The Pope’s January prayer intentions
The Vatican has announced Pope Francis’ prayer intentions for January. His universal intention is that sincere dialogue among men and women of different faiths may produce the fruits of peace and justice. His evangelisation intention is that through dialogue and fraternal charity and with the grace of the Spirit, Christians may overcome divisions.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)