In his last Advent sermon, papal chaplain Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa honored the tradition of the nativity scene and at the same time emphasized that Christmas is “making a nativity scene from our hearts”. This, the house preacher said Friday in the audience room before the Pope and the Curia, was “the most arduous task of life.”
The almost 90-year-old Capuchin, who was a papal preacher for half his life, referred to the nativity scene tradition introduced by the founder of his order, Francis of Assisi, exactly 800 years ago. This year, the Vatican's nativity scenes – both in St. Peter's Square and in the Audience Hall – also commemorate the event of Greccio in 1223, when the Italian saint recreated the Christmas event with faithful and animals as a “living nativity scene”. ”.
“Seasonal greetings” instead of Christmas…?
Unfortunately, Cantalamessa said, the nativity scene has often become an art form or a spectacle. In Western countries there is a tendency to empty Christmas of its Christian content “and to reduce it to a mere family celebration, with many fairy tales and invented characters instead of the real Christmas characters”. Some even want to change the name of the party, complained the house preacher. All this with a supposed consideration for believers of other religions, especially Muslims.
Cardinal reads surah from Quran during Advent sermon
“In reality, this is the pretext of a certain secular world that does not want these symbols, even from Muslims,” said Cantalamessa. There is a sura in the Quran about the Annunciation to Mary and the birth of Jesus; the cardinal read the Quranic passage in his Advent sermon. In Islam, the birth of Jesus and the Virgin Mary enjoys great reverence, the Capuchin noted. This was demonstrated, for example, by the fact that a few years ago the Emir of Abu Dhabi decided to dedicate a mosque to “Mary, the mother of Jesus”.
“We must prepare another manger for Jesus, a manger of the heart.”
“So the nativity scene is a useful and beautiful tradition, but we cannot be satisfied with traditional outdoor nativity scenes,” Cantalamessa continued. “We must prepare another manger for Jesus, a manger of the heart. Corde creditur: with the heart we believe.” The domestic preacher: “Let us open the door of our hearts to him. Let's make it a cradle for baby Jesus. May he feel the warmth of our love and our infinite gratitude as redeemed in the cold of the world!” This is not a “beautiful and poetic fantasy, but the most arduous task in life. Because in our hearts there is room for many guests, but only for one gentleman. “Giving birth to Jesus means letting the 'self' die or, at least, renewing the decision to no longer live for ourselves, but for the One who was born, died and rose again for us.”
(Vatican news – gs)