On December 9—the day on which the Vatican’s Nativity scene was unveiled and the Christmas tree lit in St. Peter’s Square—Pope Francis recalled the 800th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi’s Nativity scene in Greccio, Italy.
“This year, then, from Saint Peter’s Square we will think of Greccio, which in turn takes us back to Bethlehem,” Pope Francis said. “And as we contemplate Jesus, God made man, small, poor, defenseless, we cannot but think of the tragedy that the inhabitants of the Holy Land are living, expressing to those brothers and sisters of ours, especially the children and their parents, our closeness and our spiritual support.”