Pope
Francis turned 77 on Tuesday and celebrated Mass in the Santa Marta
guesthouse with 4 homeless men, his closest collaborators and staff from
the guesthouse, all of whom afterwards greeted him with a birthday
song.
It was Pope Francis’s 77th
birthday on Tuesday and those present at his morning Mass included
Archbishop Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State and Cardinal Angelo
Sodano, the Dean of the College of Cardinals, together with staff from
the Santa Marta guesthouse.
The congregation also included the Almoner
Monsignor Konrad Krajewski who brought with him 4 homeless men who live
in the streets around the Vatican. After the mass, all those present
wished the Pope a happy birthday and sang greetings to him before
joining him for breakfast in the Vatican guesthouse.
Today’s
reading was centered on the genealogy of Jesus and the Pope used this in
his homily to reflect on God’s enduring presence in our lives
throughout history. He said “God wished to live out his life alongside
us” and “took his surname from each of us.”
“God,” the Pope
continued, “has always walked alongside his people,” beginning with
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He did not want to come to redeem us without
coming to live among us and share our lives.
The Pope said this long
list of God’s people included “saints and sinners.”
The latter included
“high level sinners who committed serious sins and who didn’t listen” to
God’s plans for them.
Pope Francis said in addition to
accompanying us in our lives our God follows us and in this way, he
displays His humility, His patience and His love for us. He concluded
his homily with “a Christmas wish” for all of us “to allow God to write
our lives for us.”