It happened that the Holy Father asked where exactly the Christmas tree came from. And when Christmas ends, he asked where the tree would go. The archbishop mentions that some of the trees from the papal apartments ended up in the garden of Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Genzano. Others in the garden of Castel Gandolfo. In my time – he said – one very large one was plented in the Vatican gardens. The fact that the Holy Father asked what would happen to them was a surprise to me. Because it’s means that he cares about them. He didn’t want them to end up in the trash. It was moving. The head of the Church was worry about the Christmas tree.
When you read all that John Paul II said about the symbolism of this tree, you can understand that he was asking what would happen to the Christmas trees in his Vatican house. “This tree, which under natural conditions resists winter withering,” he said a few days before the Christmas Eve in 1997, “reminds us of the Son of God who was born on the night of Bethlehem to overcome death and give new life. And further: “As we enjoy the sight of a decorated Christmas tree for Christmas, we must not forget the deep spiritual meaning of this symbol. We cannot help but thank God for life – the temporal and the eternal, which he gave us in his Only-Begotten Son ”. So maybe when he stood there and admired the decorated Christmas trees, he was thanking God for all what was done, what is now, and for all what will be in the future. Especially for the gift of life. Now and forever.
With the consent of Archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki – “A place for everyone”
Znak Publishing House, Krakow 2013
