Vatican City - Pope Benedict XVI ushered in the Christmas season Sunday, calling it a time for joy when Christians should find it within themselves to hope that they can change the world.
The pontiff addressed the crowds in St. Peter's Square during his traditional Sunday blessing that also marked the beginning of Advent, which starts four Sundays before Christmas and is the beginning of the ecclesiastical year.
"We could say that Advent is the time when Christians should awaken in their hearts the hope that they can change the world, with the help of God," Benedict said.
Advent is "a time of great religious inspiration, because it is steeped in hope and spiritual expectation," Benedict said.
"Every time the Christian community prepares to remember the birth of the Redeemer, it experiences a quiver of joy that it transmits to a certain extent to the whole of society."