Pope Francis marks Christmas Mass at Vatican

Pope Francis celebrated a late Saturday night Christmas Mass at the Vatican amid heavy security, a media report said on Sunday.

The Mass celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ is the first major event of the Christmas season for the Pope, which will include his Sunday noon blessing on Christmas Day, the BBC reported.

During the service, he said Christmas had been "taken hostage" by materialism, and that the season needed more humility.

Throughout the past year, the Pope has urged compassion towards refugees, urging Christians to remember that Jesus himself was a migrant.

The head of the Catholic Church denounced the continuing suffering of children.

He mentioned those who faced hunger, danger on migration routes and bombing in Syrian cities such as Aleppo.

Those taking part in the service inside St Peter's Basilica had to pass through metal detectors, the BBC added.

--IANS

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