His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Porfirije crowned today's pilgrimage to the holy sites of the Holy Land with a visit to the place where the great mystery and unfathomable love of God were revealed in their fullness – the wondrous site of the Nativity of the Son of God, who became man for us and for our salvation.
 
The magnificent Church of the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem is one of the oldest churches in the world where the Divine Liturgy is still celebrated. Built by order of Saint Emperor Constantine and his mother, Saint Helena, between 326 and 333, it stands above the Bethlehem Cave, where the Most Holy Virgin Mary gave birth to the Divine Infant, whom the shepherds and wise men worshipped while the angels of God sang from the heavens: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill among men!
 
– At this very place, Heaven and earth were reconciled, God and man as well, for here the Son of God became man and bridged the unbridgeable – the ontological chasm between the uncreated and the created, between God and man. Here, man was reconciled with God – preached Patriarch Porfirije, emphasizing:
 
– This is the place where we pray first and foremost for peace among our people, for peace in the whole world, and also for each of us individually to be reconciled with God, who was born here. If we are reconciled with God, then surely we will see everything around us as a gift from God. We will see all of creation and every human being as the image of God, as our neighbor and our brother. That is why we must strive for every person, ensuring that if God is within us, we have room in our hearts and souls for every living soul, for every person – regardless of how close or distant they may be, regardless of whether they see us as enemies. For Love your neighbor as yourself is the commandment of God. That neighbor is, in truth, every human being, and each one is called to be our brother or sister. May God grant peace to us, within us, and among us; may He grant peace to our people wherever they may be; may He grant peace to our people with all other nations among whom they live; and may God, through His love and grace, bring forth His peace upon the entire world and upon all people.