Father Francisco offers his first Christmas homily

Gregorio Borgia / APFather Francisco kissing a statue of the child Jesus as the Christmas Eve mass in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, celebrates it on December 24.By Elisha Fieldstadt, NBC NewsThe faithful flocked to St. Peter's Basilica for midnight on the eve of the first Christmas dad Francisco mass, in which the Pontiff preached once again the importance of humility, and acceptance qualities has continuously demonstrated in its first nine months as head of the Catholic Church."The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light," Francis began, citing Isaiah prophesied a book of the Bible that includes heralding the birth of Jesus.Father Francisco offered a traditional lesson of light and love during his first Christmas Eve midnight mass in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Martin Fletcher, NBC reports.Jesus brought light and grace to the world, and that grace "possible salvation for the whole human race," said Francis, choosing to highlight a writing of the biblical Book of Titus.While Jesus embodied light and love, said Francis, who hate to walk in the "dark"."" If we love God and our brothers and sisters, walk in the light. ""But if our heart is closed, if we are dominated by pride, deceit, selfishness, then drops the darkness within us and our around, said the Pontiff.Francis, who celebrated the mass with more than 300 Cardinals, bishops and priests, urged the people not be afraid of approaching God - echoing the words of the biblical angel give news of the birth of Jesus."Do not fear! Our father is patient, loves us, gives us Jesus to guide us on the road that leads to the promised land. Jesus is the light that illuminates the darkness. "He is our peace, he said.Francis has tried to change the image of the Catholic Church as judgmental, pompous, inflexible institution since his election in March.Of homosexual priests, I have been asked, "who am I to judge?" It has washed the feet of the prisoners, they refused to move to the papal Palace and celebrated his recent breakfast birthday with three homeless men. On Monday, made a Christmas visit to the Emeritus Pope Benedicto XVI and asked him to pray for him."(It) is to bring a new era in the Church, a church that is more focused on the poor and that is more austere, more lively, a church that cares about everyone," said Dolores Di Benedetto, who traveled from the homeland of the Pope, Argentina to hear him speak."I thought it would be great to hear the words of this Pope close and see how people feel overwhelmed by it," said Giacchino Sabello, one of the more than 10,000 people who filled St. Peter's Basilica or outside watching the ceremony on mega-screens.At the Christmas Eve mass, Francis reiterated the importance of the oppressed, with the shepherds who were the first to learn about the birth of Jesus as an example. "They were the first because they were among the last, the marginalized," he said."Bless you, Lord God most high, who fell to yourself for our sake. You is immense, and did you small; You're rich and you did poor; you are Almighty and you made vulnerable,"said Francis in thanks to God and also a clear indication of humility encourages his flock to emulate.Ettore Ferrari / EPAFather Francisco leads the midnight Christmas mass in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on December 24.In his speech to the administrators of the Vatican on Saturday, Francis said Holiness was a practice of "deep humility and fraternal charity in our relationships with our coworkers," urged the Cardinals, bishops and priests to avoid gossip.Before the mass, Francis inspired more humility, when personally a baby Jesus doll on a replica of a manger, a custom usually performed by a support.The 2 1/2 hour mass was the first of many services Francis will lead during the holidays. On Christmas day, will deliver a "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message from the balcony of the Basilica overlooking the square St. Peter.He also held mass on new year's Eve and new year and another on 6 January for the feast of the Epiphany or "' day of Kings," celebrating the visit of the Magi to the child Jesus.Reuters contributed to this report.Related:

Vonn 'excited' for first race since devastating crash

 Nick Didlick / EPALindsey Vonn soars during women's downhill training Wednesday at Lake Louise, Alberta. By Erin McClam, Staff Writer, NBC NewsLindsey Vonn whooshed down a Canadian ski course and crossed the finish line Friday in her first race since she blew out her right knee at the world championships in February.Her preliminary time was a fraction of a second under two minutes — well off the lead at the competition, a World Cup downhill, but successfully down the mountain. The race was held at a resort where Vonn has been so dominant that some people call it Lake Lindsey.There was no immediate word on how she felt after the run.Vonn, 29, tore two ligaments and broke her leg in the brutal crash 10 months ago. She partially tore one of the reconstructed ligaments in another crash last month on a training run in Colorado.She is one of the most decorated skiers in U.S. history and perhaps the most recognizable face in the American contingent for the Sochi Olympics, so the run Friday was closely watched.“You kind of know if your body is ready or not,” she told The Associated Press and USA Today on Thursday in a joint interview, “and I feel like mine’s ready.”Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn goes into detail about the recent accident that tore the ACL ligament in her knee, and says that while she still has intentions to compete in Sochi, she is not completely sure she will be able to perform at her best.She told TODAY a few days after the Colorado injury that the most important thing was feeling stable on her skis.“It’s one thing to feel stable while you’re doing squats — it’s another thing to feel stable while you’re actually racing at 90 miles an hour,” she said. “There definitely is a long ways to go there, but I’m confident that it’s going to be OK.”The Olympics open Feb. 7 on NBC, from the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. Vonn could compete Feb. 10, 12, 15 and 18.It’s not clear whether boyfriend Tiger Woods will make the trip to Sochi with her. He was asked about it earlier this week, at a golf tournament in California, and said the decision was “just day to day.”“We just don’t know how her leg’s going to be,” he said. “We’ll just take it day to day, race to race.”Vonn won gold in the downhill and bronze in the super-G at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. In another TODAY interview in October, she vowed — “You better not doubt me” — that she would return to the medal stand. She has been ski-racing's most dominant figure, a four-time World Cup overall champion who has won an American-record 59 World Cup races.Friday presented the next big test, and Vonn probably felt at home: The competition was at Lake Louise, in the Canadian province of Alberta, where Vonn has won the last seven World Cup races and hasn’t placed lower than second since 2008. Her 14 overall victories there are the most of any skier at a single venue in World Cup history.Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn talks about her recovery from a serious knee injury and her struggle with depression. She also describes her teammates as "close friends."Vonn will race in a second downhill on Saturday and a super-G race on Sunday. She entered a training run on Wednesday and placed 22nd, then skipped a training run on Thursday.“She’s saving some energy and maybe protecting her knee a little bit,” Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany, told the AP and USA Today. “It’s a long time ago that she was racing, and everyone is excited for her because she is the big star of (recent) years, and everyone is happy to see her back on the slope.”Vonn said that she waited for swelling after her training run on Wednesday, and none came — “all positive signs.”“I’m really excited. It’s been a long time coming,” she said. “To me, this feels pretty awesome.”The Associated Press contributed to this report.This story was originally published on Fri Dec 6, 2013 1:30 PM EST

Vonn crosses finish line in first race since brutal crash 10 months ago

  Nick Didlick / EPALindsey Vonn soars during women's downhill training Wednesday at Lake Louise, Alberta. By Erin McClam, Staff Writer, NBC NewsLindsey Vonn whooshed down a Canadian ski course and crossed the finish line Friday in her first race since she blew out her right knee at the world championships in February.Her preliminary time was a fraction of a second under two minutes — well off the lead at the competition, a World Cup downhill, but successfully down the mountain. The race was held at a resort where Vonn has been so dominant that some people call it Lake Lindsey.There was no immediate word on how she felt after the run.Vonn, 29, tore two ligaments and broke her leg in the brutal crash 10 months ago. She partially tore one of the reconstructed ligaments in another crash last month on a training run in Colorado.She is one of the most decorated skiers in U.S. history and perhaps the most recognizable face in the American contingent for the Sochi Olympics, so the run Friday was closely watched.“You kind of know if your body is ready or not,” she told The Associated Press and USA Today on Thursday in a joint interview, “and I feel like mine’s ready.”Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn goes into detail about the recent accident that tore the ACL ligament in her knee, and says that while she still has intentions to compete in Sochi, she is not completely sure she will be able to perform at her best.She told TODAY a few days after the Colorado injury that the most important thing was feeling stable on her skis.“It’s one thing to feel stable while you’re doing squats — it’s another thing to feel stable while you’re actually racing at 90 miles an hour,” she said. “There definitely is a long ways to go there, but I’m confident that it’s going to be OK.”The Olympics open Feb. 7 on NBC, from the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. Vonn could compete Feb. 10, 12, 15 and 18.It’s not clear whether boyfriend Tiger Woods will make the trip to Sochi with her. He was asked about it earlier this week, at a golf tournament in California, and said the decision was “just day to day.”“We just don’t know how her leg’s going to be,” he said. “We’ll just take it day to day, race to race.”Vonn won gold in the downhill and bronze in the super-G at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. In another TODAY interview in October, she vowed — “You better not doubt me” — that she would return to the medal stand. She has been ski-racing's most dominant figure, a four-time World Cup overall champion who has won an American-record 59 World Cup races.Friday presented the next big test, and Vonn probably felt at home: The competition was at Lake Louise, in the Canadian province of Alberta, where Vonn has won the last seven World Cup races and hasn’t placed lower than second since 2008. Her 14 overall victories there are the most of any skier at a single venue in World Cup history.Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn talks about her recovery from a serious knee injury and her struggle with depression. She also describes her teammates as "close friends."Vonn will race in a second downhill on Saturday and a super-G race on Sunday. She entered a training run on Wednesday and placed 22nd, then skipped a training run on Thursday.“She’s saving some energy and maybe protecting her knee a little bit,” Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany, told the AP and USA Today. “It’s a long time ago that she was racing, and everyone is excited for her because she is the big star of (recent) years, and everyone is happy to see her back on the slope.”Vonn said that she waited for swelling after her training run on Wednesday, and none came — “all positive signs.”“I’m really excited. It’s been a long time coming,” she said. “To me, this feels pretty awesome.”The Associated Press contributed to this report.This story was originally published on Fri Dec 6, 2013 1:30 PM EST

Woman killed in first walk after motorcycle accident

Shomari Stone, NBCWashington.comSally Ann Okuly survived cancer. And he survived a motorcycle accident six months ago, feels it sufficiently well to leave the House last week for the first time in half a year.But his determination was no match for a car on Sunday morning. Okuly was run over by a car and killed when he left his Woodbridge, Virginia House for the first time, to cross the street to your favorite store and buy a newspaper and a cup of coffee.Police say that a car driven by Amanda styles-Mays, 24, crashed into Okuly as she crossed in Opitz Boulevard and Montgomery Avenue. Okuly was crossing with the light and was in the crosswalk.Styles-Mays has been charged with failure to yield to a pedestrian and reckless driving."One of her favorite to make things was to walk on that front Wawa gas station," said her husband, Bill Okuly, who still struggles with his emotions when he speaks of his wife.Sally Ann was also a mother of two children. The couple - who were members of the motorcycle club Rolling Thunder - was created to celebrate their anniversary 41 on Monday."She's the most generous in the world person," said Bill Okuly.However, he said, feels that his wife will always remain with him. "Oh yes, she will always be there," said Bill Okuly.