In his homily during the consistory, which the Vatican website inaccurately described as a “papal Mass,” Pope Francis emphasized that “to walk in the path of Jesus means above all to return to him and to put him back at the center of everything.”

“To walk in the path of Jesus also means to cultivate a passion for encounter,” he continued in his homily, which lasted slightly over ten minutes, just days after he urged priest to keep a tight ten-minute limit on homilies. “To walk in the path of Jesus means, in the end, to be builders of communion and unity.”

Among the cardinals participating in the consistory was Cardinal Angelo Becciu (video, 1:02:40), four years after he renounced the rights connected with the cardinalate, and a year after his conviction in the Vatican’s “trial of the century.”

There are now 253 members of the College of Cardinals, 140 of whom are eligible to take part in a papal election.

“We all still remember the terrible fire that seriously compromised the building five years ago,” Pope Francis wrote in a message, dated November 21 and released December 7.

“Our hearts ached at the risk of seeing a masterpiece of Christian faith and architecture, an age-old witness to your national history, disappear,” the Pope continued. “Today, sadness and mourning have given way to joy, celebration and praise.”

After thanking the firefighters, craftsmen, and public officials, the Pope added:

May the rebirth of this admirable church be a prophetic sign of the renewal of the Church in France. I invite all the baptized who will joyfully enter this Cathedral to feel a legitimate sense of pride, and to reclaim their faith heritage.

Presiding at Mass on December 8, Syrian Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joussif III Younan prayed that “this phase of transition in Syria may be safe and peaceful.” He observed that Syria has been suffering for year through “a terrible war, whose security and economic impacts have been terrible for everyone.”

Syrian Orthodox Patriarch Mor Ignatios Aphrem II also prayed for peace, and for a new regime “respecting Syria’s cultural identity and long history.”

Syria’s Christians are uneasy about their prospects under a government whose most prominent leaders were important figures in the Islamic State.

The Pontiff called for “a wide-ranging imagination and thinking” in theology, contrasting that approach with “a shriveled, closed, and mediocre way of thinking.” He decried the theological manuals of the past: “all closed, all museum pieces, all bookish, without making you think.”

Pope Francis applauded the greater representation of women in theological studies. “All all-male theology is an incomplete theology,” he said. “We still have a long way to go in this direction.” He also encouraged cross-disciplinary approaches to theology. And he remarked that many middle-aged people today are taking an interest in theological studies: an interest that should be encouraged.

“Let us pause for a moment to contemplate Mary’s beauty in the light of the Word of God, focusing on three aspects of her life that remind us of her closeness to us,” the Pope preached. What are these three aspects? Mary as daughter, bride and mother.”

After reflecting on these aspects, he added:

Brothers and sisters, let us look to Mary Immaculate and ask her to conquer us through her loving Heart. May she convert us and make us a community in which filial, spousal and maternal love may be a rule and criterion of life.

Only then will families be united, will spouses truly share everything, will parents be physically present and close to their children and children will take care of their parents. That is the beauty we see in the Immaculate Virgin; that is the “beauty that saves the world.”

After reflecting on Immaculate Mary, the Pope asked:

Brothers and sisters, contemplating this mystery we can ask ourselves: in our time, ravaged by wars and bent on the effort to possess and dominate, where do I place my hope? In strength, in money, in powerful friends? Do I place my hope there? Or in God’s infinite mercy? And in the face of the shiny false models circulating in the media and on the internet, where do I look for my happiness? Where is the treasure of my heart?

“Let us implore the intercession of Mary,” he concluded. “And I will give you a piece of advice. Today it is a good day to decide to make a good Confession. If you cannot go today, this week, until next Sunday, open your heart and the Lord will forgive everything, everything, everything. And so, in Mary’s hands, we will be happier.”

He explained, “I think of the continued devastating effects of climate change, which especially impact developing nations and the poorest members of society, the armed conflicts that cause untold suffering to so many of our brothers and sisters, and the plight of countless migrants and refugees fleeing their homelands in search of a better future for their families.”

“Every country must have a voice in addressing these problems of international concern and formulating comprehensive and long-term solutions,” the Pope continued. “In this regard, the patient work of diplomacy is of the utmost importance.”

The new ambassadors hail from India, Jordan, Denmark, Luxembourg, São Tomé and Principe, Rwanda, Turkmenistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and Kenya.

Without mentioning Biden explicitly, the Pope said during his Angelus audience on December 8: “I feel compelled to ask all of you to pray for the inmates on death row in the United States. Let us pray that their sentences may be commuted or changed.”

President Biden is expected to issue a number of pardons before leaving office on January 20.

According to the UN human-rights commissioner in Haiti, at least 184 people were murdered in the capital city of Port-au-Prince during the past weekend alone. The total number of killings in Haiti this year is over 5,000.

More than 100 murders were reportedly ordered this week by a gang leader in the sprawling slum of Cite-Soleil; the gang targeted suspected voodoo practitioners.

Residents of the small town of Ledro in northern Italy had gathered around the 95-foot, 200-year-old tree in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent it from being cut down.

After reflecting on the Nativity scene, which features a lagoon, the Pope turned his thoughts to Bethlehem.

“Let us remember the brothers and sisters who, instead, right there and in other parts of the world, are suffering from the tragedy of war,” he said. “With tears in our eyes, let us raise our prayer for peace. Brothers and sisters, enough war, enough violence!”

“This is a good opportunity to remind ourselves of the daily commitment to the service of evangelization and the propagation of the Word of God,” the Pope said on December 6. “The Word of God must reach everyone. Do not forget this: everyone.”

“Indeed, proclaiming the Gospel to the entire world is the mission of all Christians,” the Pope added. “[These] are the words of Saint Paul, which should resound in the heart of every baptized person: ‘Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel!’” (1 Cor 9:16).

Nicaraguan law allows the government to close down religious organizations, and the regime has used that power to shutter Catholic charities and media outlets. The Pillar reports that religious orders have been warned that residency permits for foreign-born members will not be renewed. That policy, if put into effect, would effectively close down some religious communities.

“This Concert with the Poor that you will perform today is a beautiful sign of synodal harmony, especially because it will take place in communion with our most fragile brothers and sisters, invited to take part in this wondrous symphony of love that is the Gospel,” the Pope continued.

Both the papal address and the concert took place on December 7. Among those participating in various ways in the concert were Maestro Hans Zimmer, cellist Tina Guo, composer Dario Vero, and actress Serena Autieri. 3,000 out of the 8,000 seats in Paul VI Audience Hall were reserved for the poor, the homeless, prisoners, migrants, and others.

Sister Donelli, who serves as a volunteer in a Milan prison, denied the charges.

The Vatican reported that their conversation centered on church-state issues, but also touched on the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Fleming “thanked the Holy Father for the vital role he and the Holy See play in building peace in the world,” Ireland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted.

“Charles, save your soul,” said the former Anglican cleric, who entered the Catholic Church in December 2019. “Become Orthodox, become Catholic, and hand that whole mess over to people who thrive on pantomime and fakery.”