Pope warns against activism in the run-up to Christmas: “We are not machines”

A temptation in these days leading up to the birth of Jesus at Christmas, and then during the holidays, is frenetic activism, the Pope told French-speaking pilgrims, the first to whom the Pontiff's words are summarized in the Audiences.

That is why he invited them, and the fifteen thousand Romans and pilgrims present in St. Peter's, to consider that this “frantic activism in preparing for the festivities would end up being superficial and leading to disappointment.”.

Instead, he continued, “let us devote time to keeping our hearts attentive and vigilant as we wait for Jesus, so that his loving presence may forever become the treasure of our lives and our hearts.”.

Fast-paced society, pursuit of results

Next, continuing with the same line of argument, he addressed English speakers, talking to them about our “fast-paced society.”. 

In this society, “we often feel overwhelmed by the pressures and expectations of greater efficiency and optimal results,” he emphasized, perhaps also thinking about the quarterly reporting obligations of companies listed on the world's largest financial market, New York's Wall Street.

When we feel this way, “let us remember the words we have just heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew: ‘For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also’ (Mt 6:21).”.

The treasure of our heart

The treasure of our hearts “is not the goods of this world, nor prosperity, nor success, nor admirable achievements,” said the Pontiff.

St. Augustine described our hearts as restless. “That restlessness is neither arbitrary nor disordered; it is oriented toward heaven, whose gates are opened to us thanks to the incarnation, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If we enter into the dynamism of his love and grace, he will triumph in us, not only at the hour of our death, but also today, right now, and every day from now on,” he invited everyone.

His words to Spanish speakers have gone even further, if one can say so, by emphasizing that “we are not machines.”.

Back to basics: “We are not machines”

“Jesus, crucified and risen, makes us a promise: the heart that seeks him will not be disappointed.” And “he helps us understand that amid our daily commitments, with their high risk of distraction, despair, or meaninglessness, we are invited to return to the essence of our existence.”.

“The Lord reminds us that we are not machines but men and women with a heart, which is the synthesis of our thoughts, feelings, and affections. It is the center of our person.

The treasure is in the heart, not in large financial investments. 

In its catechesis At the beginning, concluding the Jubilee Year cycle, on ‘Jesus Christ our hope,” the Pope had said: 

“It is, then, in the heart that the true treasure is preserved, not in the safes of the earth, not in large financial investments, today more than ever insane and unjustly concentrated, idolized at the bloody price of millions of human lives and the devastation of God's creation.”. 

The concern of Saint Augustine

The restlessness of St. Augustine's heart has hovered over the Pope's meditation. “With this adjective, ‘restless,’ St. Augustine makes us understand the impulse of human beings who tend toward their full realization. The complete phrase refers to the beginning of the Confessions, where Augustine writes: ‘Lord, you made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you’ (I, 1,1).”.

Finally, the Pope concluded by speaking of the dynamism of God's love. “Jesus Christ, through his Incarnation, Passion, Death, and Resurrection, has given a solid foundation to this hope. The restless heart will not be disappointed if it enters into the dynamism of love for which it was created.”.

Sacrament of Penance and spiritual retreats

Minutes earlier, Leo XIV did not forget a traditional Christian element in the run-up to Christmas, in this case when addressing the Polish people: “Prepare yourselves for the coming of Jesus, especially through the sacrament of Penance and spiritual retreats, where you will experience true peace, joy, and meaning in life.”.