“Next Sunday will be Christmas. During this week, I do recommend that we find some time to pause in silence and imagine Our Lady and Saint Joseph who are going to Bethlehem”. Pope Francis made this off-the-cuff invitation at the end of his Angelus yesterday. “Let us imagine how they go there”, he continued: “Their journey, their fatigue, but also their joy and emotion, and then the anxiety of finding a place, their fear… and so on. The nativity scene helps us in this”. Hence the invitation: “Let us try to enter the true Christmas, that of Jesus who draws near – the God-with-us, close to us – to receive the grace of this celebration, which is the grace of closeness, of love, of humbleness and tenderness”. Immediately after the end of the Angelus, the Pope asked to pray “that dialogue in the Democratic Republic of the Congo may unfold with serenity so as to avoid all forms of violence for the good of the entire country”, and greeted the “large group” of UNITALSI – “Thank you so much for the wonderful work you do!” -, who had set up a live nativity scene including people with disabilities. “I would like to thank all the people and institutions who have wished me happy birthday yesterday”, he added, referring to the many people from all over the world who had sent him their best wishes for his 80th birthday: “Thank you so much! I wish you all a good Sunday: the weather is good!”.