“Today, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the Gospel presents us with the scene of the Annunciation (cf. Lk 1:26-38),” Pope Francis said. “It demonstrates two of Mary’s attitudes that help us understand how she may have guarded the unique gift she received—a heart completely free from sin. These two attitudes are amazement regarding the works of God and fidelity in the simple things.”

The Pope continued, “So, let us ask ourselves: Do I believe that fidelity to God is important both in everyday situations as well as in my spiritual journey? And if I believe this, do I find the time to read the Gospel, to pray, to participate in the Eucharist and to receive sacramental forgiveness, to perform some tangible act of disinterested service? These are the small everyday choices, choices necessary to welcome the Lord’s presence.”

“May Mary Immaculate help us be amazed at God’s gifts and respond to them with faithful generosity each day,” he concluded.

“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.”

As is customary, the Pontiff later traveled to the Column of the Immaculate Conception in Piazza di Spagna, where he made an act of veneration to Mary Immaculate.

“Show us once again, O Mother, the path of conversion, for there is no peace without pardon, and there is no pardon without repentance,” the Pope prayed. “The world changes if hearts change; and everyone must say: beginning with mine. But only God can change the human heart with his grace, the grace in which you, Mary, were immersed from the first instant.”

In his address, the Pope offered three perspectives: “the perspective of the scientific progress that has transformed the life of mankind in these hundred years,” “the perspective of service,” and the human perspective.

“At this time, when humanity is plagued by terrible conflicts, the protection of such human richness is the best guarantee that your commitment is always directed towards the defense of life, justice and peace,” the Pope said. “For all this I entrust you, your families and your service to the heavenly patroness, Our Lady of Loreto.”

An Iowa man was later arrested on charges of homicide and using a weapon to commit a felony.

In 2007, Father Gutgsell “pleaded guilty to theft by deception for embezzling $127,000 from an area church,” the Associated Press reported. “He was sentenced to probation and ordered to pay restitution. He was later reassigned to another church. At the time, church leaders said Gutgsell learned his lesson, admitted wrongdoing and sought forgiveness.”

“75 years ago, on 10 December 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed,” the Pope said. “It is like a master plan. Many steps have been taken, many still need to be made, and unfortunately, at times, steps backward have been taken.”

The Pope added, “The commitment to human rights is never finished! In this regard, I am near all those who, without fanfare, in concrete daily life, fight and personally pay the price defending the rights of those who do not count.”

Catholic philosopher Jacques Maritain and Charles Malik, a Greek Orthodox diplomat, helped shape the declaration.

“The desert, an empty place, where you do not communicate; and the voice, a means to speak—these seem like two contradictory images,” Pope Francis said. “But they are joined in the Baptist.”

The Pope added, “We can ask ourselves: What place does silence have in my days? Is it an empty, perhaps oppressive, silence? Or is it a space for listening, for prayer, for guarding my heart? Is my life sober or filled with superfluous things?”

“Even if it means going against the tide, let us value silence, sobriety and listening,” he concluded. “May Mary, Virgin of silence, help us to love the desert, to become credible voices who testify to her Son who is coming.”

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Cardinal George Alencherry, 78, as Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, and warned that dissent within the Archeparchy (archdiocese) of Ernakulam-Angamaly could lead to canonical sanctions.