Pope Leo XIV says "Let us prepare ourselves" in "the spirituality of Advent...each of us can be a little light, if we welcome Jesus" FULL TEXT
POPE LEO XIV at the ANGELUS
in the Vatican's St Peter's Square
2nd Sunday of Advent, 7 December 2025
________________________________________
Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!
The Gospel for this second Sunday of Advent announces the coming of the Kingdom of God (cf. Mt 3:1-12). Before Jesus’s public ministry, John the Baptist, his precursor, appears on the scene. John preached in the desert of Judea saying: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near!” (Mt 3:1).
In the “Our Father” we pray each day: “Thy kingdom come”, as Jesus himself taught us. With this invocation we turn towards the new thing that God has in store for us, recognizing that the course of history is not already written by the powerful people of this world. Let us, then, put our thoughts and energy at the service of God who came not to reign over us, but rather to free us. This is the “gospel”, the truly good news that motivates and draws us in.
Certainly, in his preaching, the Baptist’s tone is severe. Nonetheless, the people listen attentively because they hear resounding in his words God’s plea to take life seriously, to take advantage of the present moment in order to prepare themselves for the encounter with him who judges, not by appearance, but by the deeds and intentions of the heart.
This same John will be surprised at the manner in which the Kingdom of God manifests itself in Jesus Christ, in meekness and in mercy. The prophet Isaiah compared Jesus to a sprout: an image not of power or destruction, but of birth and newness. Upon the shoot, which sprouts forth from a seemingly dead tree trunk, the Holy Spirit begins gently to blow its gifts (cf. Is 11:1-10). Each one of us can think of a similar surprise that has happened to us in life.
This, too, is what the Church experienced in the Second Vatican Council, which concluded exactly sixty years ago. It is an experience that is renewed when we journey together toward the Kingdom of God with everyone eager to welcome and serve it. When the Kingdom comes to fruition, not only will those things which seem weak or marginal bud forth, but even those things which humanly speaking would be impossible will also be brought to fulfillment. In the images given by the prophet: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them” (Is 11:6).
Sisters and brothers, how much the world needs this hope! Nothing is impossible to God. Let us prepare ourselves for his Kingdom, let us welcome it. The little child, Jesus of Nazareth, will lead us! He who placed himself in our hands, from the night of his birth to the dark hour of his death on the cross, shines upon our history as the rising Sun. A new day has begun: let us arise and walk in his light!
This is the spirituality of Advent, very luminous and concrete. The streetlights remind us that each of us can be a little light, if we welcome Jesus, the shoot of a new world. Let us learn how to do this from Mary, our Mother, a woman of hope who remains faithful in waiting.
____________________
After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters,
A few days ago I returned from my first Apostolic Journey to Türkiye and Lebanon. With my beloved brother Bartholomew, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, and the Representatives of other Christian confessions, we gathered to pray together in Iznik, the site of the ancient city of Nicea, where 1700 years ago, the first Ecumenical Council took place. Today is the 60th anniversary of the Common Declaration between Pope Paul VI and the Patriarch Athenagoras, which put an end to the mutual excommunications. We give thanks to God and renew our dedication to journeying towards the full visible unity of all Christians. In Türkiye I had the joy of meeting the Catholic community: through patient dialogue and service to those who suffer, they witness to the Gospel of love and the logic of God who manifests himself in littleness.
Lebanon continues to be a mosaic of coexistence and it comforted me to hear many testimonies in this regard. I met people who announce the Gospel by welcoming refugees, visiting the imprisoned, and sharing food with those in need. I was comforted by the sight of so many people in the street who came to greet me. And I was likewise touched by the meeting with the relatives of the victims of the explosion in the port of Beirut. The Lebanese people were waiting for a word and a presence of consolation, but it was they who comforted me with their faith and their enthusiasm! I thank everyone who accompanied me with their prayers! Dear brothers and sisters, all that has happened in these recent days in Türkiye and Lebanon teaches us that peace is possible, and that Christians in dialogue with men and women of other faiths and cultures can contribute to building it up. Let us not forget that peace is possible!
I would like to express my closeness to the people of South and Southeast Asia, who have been severely tried by recent natural disasters. I pray for the victims, for the families who mourn their loss and for those who provide assistance. I exhort the international community and all people of goodwill to support our brothers and sisters of those regions with gestures of solidarity.
I greet all of you with affection, Romans and pilgrims. I greet all of those who have come from other parts of the world, in particular the Peruvian faithful from Pisco, Cusco and Lima; pilgrims from Poland, remembering also the Day of Prayer and Material Assistance to the Church in the East; and also the group of Portuguese students.
I also greet the parish groups coming from Lentiai, Manerbio, Santa Cesarea Terme, Cerfignano, Roverchiara and Roverchiaretta; the boys and girls from Marostica and Pianezze; the confirmandi from Cavaion Veronese, the young people from the Oratory of Mezzocorona, the group of altar servers from Bologna and the members of the Madonna del Granato Mutual Aid Society.
I wish everyone a happy Sunday and a blessed Advent journey.
Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!
The Gospel for this second Sunday of Advent announces the coming of the Kingdom of God (cf. Mt 3:1-12). Before Jesus’s public ministry, John the Baptist, his precursor, appears on the scene. John preached in the desert of Judea saying: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near!” (Mt 3:1).
In the “Our Father” we pray each day: “Thy kingdom come”, as Jesus himself taught us. With this invocation we turn towards the new thing that God has in store for us, recognizing that the course of history is not already written by the powerful people of this world. Let us, then, put our thoughts and energy at the service of God who came not to reign over us, but rather to free us. This is the “gospel”, the truly good news that motivates and draws us in.
Certainly, in his preaching, the Baptist’s tone is severe. Nonetheless, the people listen attentively because they hear resounding in his words God’s plea to take life seriously, to take advantage of the present moment in order to prepare themselves for the encounter with him who judges, not by appearance, but by the deeds and intentions of the heart.
This same John will be surprised at the manner in which the Kingdom of God manifests itself in Jesus Christ, in meekness and in mercy. The prophet Isaiah compared Jesus to a sprout: an image not of power or destruction, but of birth and newness. Upon the shoot, which sprouts forth from a seemingly dead tree trunk, the Holy Spirit begins gently to blow its gifts (cf. Is 11:1-10). Each one of us can think of a similar surprise that has happened to us in life.
This, too, is what the Church experienced in the Second Vatican Council, which concluded exactly sixty years ago. It is an experience that is renewed when we journey together toward the Kingdom of God with everyone eager to welcome and serve it. When the Kingdom comes to fruition, not only will those things which seem weak or marginal bud forth, but even those things which humanly speaking would be impossible will also be brought to fulfillment. In the images given by the prophet: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them” (Is 11:6).
Sisters and brothers, how much the world needs this hope! Nothing is impossible to God. Let us prepare ourselves for his Kingdom, let us welcome it. The little child, Jesus of Nazareth, will lead us! He who placed himself in our hands, from the night of his birth to the dark hour of his death on the cross, shines upon our history as the rising Sun. A new day has begun: let us arise and walk in his light!
This is the spirituality of Advent, very luminous and concrete. The streetlights remind us that each of us can be a little light, if we welcome Jesus, the shoot of a new world. Let us learn how to do this from Mary, our Mother, a woman of hope who remains faithful in waiting.
____________________
After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters,
A few days ago I returned from my first Apostolic Journey to Türkiye and Lebanon. With my beloved brother Bartholomew, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, and the Representatives of other Christian confessions, we gathered to pray together in Iznik, the site of the ancient city of Nicea, where 1700 years ago, the first Ecumenical Council took place. Today is the 60th anniversary of the Common Declaration between Pope Paul VI and the Patriarch Athenagoras, which put an end to the mutual excommunications. We give thanks to God and renew our dedication to journeying towards the full visible unity of all Christians. In Türkiye I had the joy of meeting the Catholic community: through patient dialogue and service to those who suffer, they witness to the Gospel of love and the logic of God who manifests himself in littleness.
Lebanon continues to be a mosaic of coexistence and it comforted me to hear many testimonies in this regard. I met people who announce the Gospel by welcoming refugees, visiting the imprisoned, and sharing food with those in need. I was comforted by the sight of so many people in the street who came to greet me. And I was likewise touched by the meeting with the relatives of the victims of the explosion in the port of Beirut. The Lebanese people were waiting for a word and a presence of consolation, but it was they who comforted me with their faith and their enthusiasm! I thank everyone who accompanied me with their prayers! Dear brothers and sisters, all that has happened in these recent days in Türkiye and Lebanon teaches us that peace is possible, and that Christians in dialogue with men and women of other faiths and cultures can contribute to building it up. Let us not forget that peace is possible!
I would like to express my closeness to the people of South and Southeast Asia, who have been severely tried by recent natural disasters. I pray for the victims, for the families who mourn their loss and for those who provide assistance. I exhort the international community and all people of goodwill to support our brothers and sisters of those regions with gestures of solidarity.
I greet all of you with affection, Romans and pilgrims. I greet all of those who have come from other parts of the world, in particular the Peruvian faithful from Pisco, Cusco and Lima; pilgrims from Poland, remembering also the Day of Prayer and Material Assistance to the Church in the East; and also the group of Portuguese students.
I also greet the parish groups coming from Lentiai, Manerbio, Santa Cesarea Terme, Cerfignano, Roverchiara and Roverchiaretta; the boys and girls from Marostica and Pianezze; the confirmandi from Cavaion Veronese, the young people from the Oratory of Mezzocorona, the group of altar servers from Bologna and the members of the Madonna del Granato Mutual Aid Society.
I wish everyone a happy Sunday and a blessed Advent journey.
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