Archbishop Gänswein warns of a "soulless Christmas"

The former Papal secretary reveals what is particularly important to him besides the church services during the holiday

Archbishop Georg Gänswein has warned of a loss of the Christian core of Christmas. In an interview with the German Catholic News Agency (KNA), the long-time secretary of Pope Benedict XVI and current nuncio to Lithuania said: "The religious aspect is increasingly being sidelined. The actual Christmas story—the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God—is fading into the background." Christmas is being undermined, and the festival is losing its soul.

Gänswein said that he is particularly moved by the spiritual dimension of the holidays: "The solemn liturgy of the Christmas days, especially the celebration of Midnight Mass." The liturgy opens the heart and speaks to the senses. "It unlocks the Christmas message in a unique way."

Important customs and rituals at Christmas

His personal perspective on the festival has changed over the course of his life: "My perspective has become more intense. I gratefully acknowledge that the mystery of Christmas has increasingly become a source of deep joy and inner peace," said the 69-year-old.

Customs from his childhood also continue to play a significant role for the archbishop. "All the customs that have developed around Christmas and with which I grew up are very dear to me: from the sensory to the spiritual," he said, mentioning "praying together for the deceased, singing Christmas carols, the wonderful Christmas cookies, and the delicious Christmas meal with family, relatives, and friends."

Gänswein says he doesn't miss any of that at his current place of work, Vilnius: "All the Christmas customs that I knew from my childhood and from Rome, I have rediscovered here in Vilnius with slight nuances." Therefore, he hasn't had to import anything.

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