ANGELUS. Catholic faithful gather to hear the Angelus address of Pope Francis at St. Peter's Square on Sunday, Christmas Eve (Dec. 24, 2023). The Vatican's Gendarmerie police said around 15,000 people attended the Mass. (ANSA)
ROME – Pope Francis appealed to the faithful to spurn consumerism in their Christmas celebrations, avoiding waste and thinking of those in need, during his Angelus address on Christmas Eve.
"Let us not confuse celebration with consumerism!" the Argentine pontiff said as he also called on people to celebrate Christmas with simplicity.
He urged the faithful to observe Christmas “by sharing with those who lack necessities or companionship.”
The Pope also expressed his closeness to the victims of poverty, hunger and war.
"We are thinking of Palestine, Israel, Ukraine," he said.
"We are also thinking of all those who suffer from poverty, from hunger, from slavery."
The Vatican's Gendarmerie police corps said around 15,000 people were in St Peter's Square for the Angelus address. (ANSA)
