Pope Francis began 2025 with a plea for peace and the protection of human life, calling for “a firm commitment to promote respect for the dignity of human life, from conception to natural death” in his New Year’s Day homily.

Speaking at St. Peter’s Basilica during Mass for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God — which coincides with the 58th World Day of Peace — the pope particularly emphasized the dignity of every person “born of woman.”

“Protecting life, caring for wounded life, restoring dignity to the life of every ‘born of woman’ is the fundamental basis for building a civilization of peace,” Francis said in his homily.

The pontiff connected the themes of peace and human dignity to the celebration of Mary’s divine motherhood, emphasizing how Christ’s incarnation — being “born of woman” — reveals God’s presence in human frailty.

“If He, who is the Son of God, became so small as to be held in a mother’s arms, cared for and nursed, this means that today too he comes among us in all those who need similar care,” the Pope said.

The Mass also marked the Jubilee Year, launched on Christmas, with Francis noting that “Mary is the door through which Christ entered this world,” quoting St. Ambrose.

Reflecting on modern challenges, the pope warned against imagining an “abstract God” disconnected from human reality, instead emphasizing Christ’s concrete presence in human suffering and need.

The Pope concluded by entrusting the new Jubilee Year to Mary, praying that “hope may be reborn and peace may finally spring up for all the peoples of the earth.”