"A child is born to us, a son is given us¡K" (Is.9:5). These words of the prophet Isaiah, uttered at midnight, initiate the Feast of the Nativity. They are proclaimed to all who gather in St Peter's Basilica and to all who hear them in any other part of the world. They once more become the message of the Good News, the world of Light and Joy.

My brothers and sisters this Nativity is the sign of hope! Let us surround the place where God was made man with a vast crown of hearts! Let us form a circle about this virgin, who gave Him human life on the night of the Birth of God! Let us form a court about the Holy Family!

Emmanuel, You among us! You have committed yourself to the extreme consequences of that alliance with man, concluded from the beginning, even though it has been so often violated and infringed.