"God’s closeness is not a matter of space or time, but a matter of love: love draws people closer!". It was said by the Pope, who, during yesterday’s Angelus, recalled that "next Christmas will come to remind us of this fundamental truth of our faith and, in front of the Nativity scene, we will taste the Christian joy, while contemplating in the newborn Jesus the face of the God who came close to us, out of love". Lingering on the readings of the Third Sunday of Advent, Benedict XVI commented a phrase from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Philippians: “Always rejoice in the Lord", because "the Lord is close to us”. "What does this closeness of God’s mean?", wondered the Pope, who thinks "the apostle Paul, in writing to the Christians of Philippi, must have been thinking of Christ’s return and invites them to rejoice, because that is certain". However, Saint Paul himself, in his letter to the Thessalonians, "warns that no one can know when the Lord will come and warns people against any scaremongering, as if Christ’s return were imminent". During the Angelus, Benedict according to tradition blessed the “Infant Jesuses” for the cribs set up in houses, schools and parishes, wishing that Jesus "may be lovingly welcomed in all the houses in Rome and in the world".
