Manger Square

My running paid off today as 3 of us tried to drive over to Bethlehem for Mass with the Holy Father early this morning .

“I thank Almighty God for giving me the grace to come to Bethlehem,” said Pope Benedict XVI in beginning his homily.  I felt the same way—we almost hadn’t made it.

We found all the roads to Bethlehem closed for security—making it a little hard to get there.  Knowing the area from running, though, I was able to navigate us through smaller neighborhoods to get to the back roads that brought us into Bethlehem, in a Magi-like way, by a different route.

There we found several checkpoints as well, but just as we came to the final barricade, beyond which no traffic was allowed, Father Don made a left turn to pull into the driveway of a friend.

So with passage and parking provided, we were able to be part of a latter-day singing of heaven and earth’s Gloria in Excelsis Deo.

Along with a good-sized crowd—flooding the square:

Because of our roundabout arrival, we didn’t have quite as much pre-Mass time as the day before in Jerusalem.

But we did have time to see the friars helping with the candles again.  The Franciscans providing light for the world:

Perhaps most exciting of all was seeing the joy of the Christian Palestinians of Bethlehem in having the Holy Father come to them.  Father Don had worked in the area for years, so he introduced me to some of his friends.

Including those dressed in traditional garb for the occasion:

Because Manger Square in front of the Basilica of the Nativity is quite small, papal-venuely speaking, you were guaranteed to be close:

And to get lots of sun:

A few weeks before I had been in Bethlehem and had spoken with one of the deacons about the preparations the choir was making for today’s Mass.  To hear them and some of the other sounds of the day, click here:

The Pope’s homily spoke of the revitalizing message of Christ’s birth, transforming us to be, “witnesses of the triumph of God’s love over the hatred, selfishness, fear and resentment which cripple human relationships.”  He included in his remarks a special greeting to the pilgrims from Gaza who at the last moment had received permission to leave the Gaza Strip to come to Bethlehem.

To come to Bethlehem where the world had gathered together to hear again the message of the angels bearing good tidings: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace to those whom he loves.”