Billions of people are preparing this Friday to celebrate Christmas holidays once again overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic, whose omicron variant has caused new restrictions that affect family reunions.
For the second consecutive year, when vaccines seemed to offer a somewhat more hopeful horizon, the rebound in infections threw a jug of cold water for the celebrations from Sydney to Seville.
In Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus according to Christian tradition, the hotel sector that awaited the arrival of tourists is disappointed. After almost total confinement a year ago, Israel closed its borders again.
The scouts, with their pom-pom berets on their heads, carried out their traditional parade in the old town at 9:00 am, under an overcast sky and the morning cold. The sound of drums and bagpipes brought some joy to Manger Square, next to the Basilica of the Nativity.
As in 2020, the midnight mass will be reserved for a small circle of the faithful, only by invitation.
The procession led by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa should attract more people than last year thanks to somewhat looser restrictions.
In the Vatican, Pope Francis will preside over the traditional Christmas Mass on Friday at 7:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. GMT) in St. Peter’s Basilica. On Saturday at noon, Urbi et Orbi will conduct his eighth blessing from the same square.
In general, the celebrations will generally be more relaxed than the year before, when the first vaccines were just beginning to be administered. In the United States, millions cross the country to reunite with their families.
But the pandemic is still there: the Dutch are confined, Broadway canceled Christmas shows, Peru banned family gatherings and parties at Christmas and Spain reintroduced the mandatory mask on the street, while its Catalonia region imposed a night curfew.
A shard of hope
Australians, the first to celebrate Christmas, will mostly be able to travel within the country and meet relatives for the first time since the start of the pandemic despite the record of infections registered.
“We have all witnessed moving scenes of people reuniting at airports after months of separation,” said Sydney’s Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher in his Christmas message.
“In such a gloomy period, Christmas is a ray of sunshine, a fragment of hope,” he added.
For British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a vaccination certificate would be the best gift at the foot of the tree.
“Although the time to buy gifts is theoretically over, there is still one wonderful thing that you can offer your family and the whole country and that is to get this dose, be it the first, the second or the reminder, so that the holidays of next year be even better, “he said.
In Moscow, in the midst of a period of tension with Western countries over Ukraine, Vladimir Putin asked “Ded Moroz” (Grandfather Cold, the Russian Santa Claus) to help Russia carry out its projects.
“I hope that he not only brings us gifts, but also makes the projects of the country and each of its citizens concrete,” said the president.
After an autumn of renewed hopes for vaccination, the appearance of the omicron variant darkened the environment in many homes.
On the Netflix platform, the most popular program is not the typical Christmas movie, but “Unforgivable”, a dark film starring Sandra Bullock about the redemption of a former convict.
The New York Times bestseller list features books on identity and slavery. And on Spotify, the timeless “All I want for Christmas is you” has been superseded by a song about a breakup full of foul language.
Sled operation
But border closures won’t stop the famous reindeer-powered sleigh from turning around. Canada has opened its airspace to him after he presented a vaccination certificate and a negative test, the transport minister said.
The entire crew of Santa’s sleigh has received the green light, including Rudolph whose “nose was bright red, but they made sure he had no symptoms of covid-19 before taking off.”
The same in Australia. “Our air traffic controllers will guide Santa Claus using our surveillance technology … to ensure that he and his reindeer are safe and on track to deliver the gifts,” the aviation safety authority said.
“He’s authorized to fly 500 feet (150 meters) so he can skim over the roofs and deliver his gifts quickly and discreetly. After all, his magic sleigh is no ordinary plane.”
