Homily of Holy Father New year day

(January 01, 2010) On this New Year’s Day and the day of the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of god, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated the Mass at St Peter’s Basilica, together with Cardinals, Bishops, Priests and the faithful. In his homily the Holy Father having greeted all for the New Year, reminded them of the Face of God in the environment. On the first day of the New Year, said the Pope, we have the joy and the grace of celebrating the Holy Mother of God and at the same time, the World Day of Peace. On both occasions we celebrate Christ, the Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary and our true peace!
The Pontiff referred to the first reading and the Responsorial Psalm that contain expressions of the metaphor of the face referring to God. The face is the expression par excellence of the person, what makes it recognizable and which come through feelings, thoughts, and intentions of the heart. The entire biblical story can be read as progressive revelation of God's face, until it reaches its full manifestation in Jesus Christ, said the Holy Father. The face of God took a human face, letting the child see and recognize the Virgin Mary, and that is why we honour her with the highest title of "Mother of God." She, who kept in her heart the secret of divine maternity, was the first to see the face of God made man in the small fruit of her womb, said Pope Benedict.

Speaking on the Maternal Love of Mary the Pope said, “The mother has a very special relationship, unique and somewhat exclusive with her newborn son. The first person the child sees is his mother, and this look is crucial to its relationship with life, with himself, with others and with God, which is crucial because he can become a "man of peace" as said in the Gospel of Luke. The Holy Father then invited all present and his listeners to meditate on the mystery of the face of God and man, which is a privileged path that leads to peace. In reality, he said, only if we have God in our hearts, we can detect in the face of a brother in humanity, not as a means but an end, not a rival or an enemy, but another self, a facet of the infinite mystery of being truly human. In childhood it is important said the Pope, to be educated to show respect for others, even when the other is different from us. It is now increasingly common experience that schools are made up of children of various nationalities, but also when it does not happen, the children’s faces are a prophetic voice of humanity in our invitation to form a family unit.

Pope Benedict then referred to his message for the 43^rd World Day of Peace with the theme: "If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation." This theme he said fits into the perspective of God's face along with the human faces. Indeed, we can say that man is capable of respecting the creatures in so far as he bears in mind the full meaning of life that leads to the respect of the environment in which he lives. Reflecting on the concept of "human ecology", the Pope said that there is indeed a close link between respect for rights and safeguarding creation and environment. If the persons are degraded, there is the degradation of the environment in which they live. One can in fact see interplay between man's face and "face" of the environment: "When human ecology is respected within society, including ecology, environment benefits from it". Only a commitment to the environment can become truly peace education and peace building.

Pope Benedict concluded his homily saying “The feast of faith becomes a feast of man and creation: the Christmas holiday that is also expressed by the decorations on the trees, the streets and homes. Everything flourishes because God has appeared among us. The Virgin Mother and the Child Jesus show this to the shepherds of Bethlehem, who rejoice and praise the Lord. The Church renews this mystery for people of every generation, showing them the face of God, because, with his blessing we can walk on the path of peace.