By the CNN Wire Staff
December 24, 2011 -- Updated 2352 GMT (0752 HKT)
Pope Benedict XVI told the faithful at Midnight Mass that "we must dismount from the high horse of our 'enlightened' reason."
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Benedict deplores the "superficial glitter of this season"
- A nativity scene is unveiled in St. Peter's Square
- The pontiff will deliver his annual Christmas message Sunday
Rome (CNN) -- Pope Benedict XVI presided over Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, delivering a homily that focused on the "essence" of the holiday rather than the "commercial celebration" it has become.
"Today Christmas has become a commercial celebration, whose bright lights hide the mystery of God's humility, which in turn calls us to humility and simplicity," the pope said after recalling the story of Christmas. "Let us ask the Lord to help us see through the superficial glitter of this season, and to discover behind it the child in the stable in Bethlehem, so as to find true joy and true light."
