教皇方濟各在梵蒂岡主持聖誕夜彌撒

Pope Francis celebrated his first Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican Tuesday, as Christians from across the globe gathered for religious services marking the birth of Jesus.

In St. Peter's Basilica, the 77-year-old Argentine pontiff, who has stressed simplicity and humility during his brief papacy, urged people to turn away from pride, deceit and self-seeking. The leader of the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics urged the faithful to instead reaffirm their love for "God, our brothers and sisters."

Earlier, thousands of Christian pilgrims descended on the West Bank town of Bethlehem -- the biblical birthplace of Jesus -- to celebrate Christianity's highest holy day.

A giant figure of Santa Claus greeted visitors in Manger Square, outside the centuries-old Church of the Nativity -- the site where Christians believe the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus.星期二，教皇方濟各在梵蒂岡首次主持聖誕夜彌撒，來自世界各地的基督徒參加了宗教儀式，紀念耶穌誕生。

在聖彼得大教堂，現年77歲的教皇呼籲人們摒棄傲慢、欺騙與私慾。儘管任職時間還不長，教皇方濟各向來強調簡樸和謙卑。作爲全世界12億天主教徒的領袖，教皇敦促信衆重新堅定對“上帝以及我們兄弟姐妹的愛”。

早些時候，成千上萬朝聖者到達約旦河西岸城市伯利恆，慶祝基督教最神聖的日子。據聖經記載，伯利恆是耶穌的誕生地。

在伯利恆的馬槽廣場，一位聖誕老人在聖誕教堂外面迎接到訪者，基督徒們相信，聖母瑪利亞就是在此地生下耶穌。