Cardinal O’Malley shares a stark Christmas missive
Calls on Catholics to remember those suffering
Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley is asking Catholics this holiday season to be stalwarts of peace and remember those suffering in wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, as well as people struggling with homelessness, addiction, and poverty, according to an early transcript of his homily that he planned to deliver at a midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.
“Peace on earth seems to be a shattered dream in today’s world with the terrible wars in Ukraine and the Holy Land, with the contentious political climate and even polarization in the Church,” O’Malley said, according to the transcript. “The message of Christmas has seldom been more urgently needed.”
O’Malley spent Christmas Eve giving out gifts at St. Peter’s Teen Center in Dorchester before meeting with guests and serving meals at the Pine Street Inn shelter ahead of the midnight Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the South End.
In his homily, O’Malley urged compassion for people who are struggling, echoing remarks he made in October when he called for church members to assist migrant families as the state’s shelter system struggled to meet the needs of so many.
“In a world where there is still no room in the Inn, we must commit ourselves to a compassionate response for the poor, the sick, the refugee, the prisoner, the stranger, the homeless, those who are of a different color, speak a different language, those who embrace another ideology.” He asked church members to celebrate Christmas through acts of love and forgiveness.
“The gifts we can give the Lord at Christmas are to mend a quarrel, forgive someone who has wronged us, ask pardon of someone we have wronged, reach out to a friend or relation we have neglected, welcome a stranger, love an enemy, forego a grudge, be gentle, express our gratitude, rejoice in the beauty of God’s creation, encourage a young person, keep a promise, seek out that forgotten person … we celebrate Christmas when we make it a feast of love, friendship, reconciliation and peace,” he said.
On Christmas Day, the archdiocese will broadcast a pretaped Mass at 8 a.m. on WLVITV and online at CatholicTV, according to a schedule released by the archdiocese Friday. O’Malley will then lead a Mass beginning at 11:30 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. The Mass will be broadcast on WHDH-TV beginning at noon and in the evening on CatholicTV at 7, according to the schedule.