Cindy Wooden of Catholic News Service reports on comments Benedict XVI made today regarding his recent pastoral visit to the US:
Pope Benedict XVI said his April 15-20 visit to the United Nations and the United States was an opportunity to give -- and to receive -- a witness to the power of hope and faith.
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(T)he pope said the hope that flows from faith in Christ can vanquish even the darkness cast by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Christian hope, "stronger than sin and death, animated a moment filled with emotion, which I passed in silence in the abyss of ground zero, where I lighted a candle, praying for all the victims of that terrible tragedy," the pope said.
The pope began his general audience by publicly thanking the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and President George W. Bush for inviting him, and all those who greeted him with affection and offered prayers for the success of his visit.
Particularly when celebrating his third anniversary as pope with an April 19 Mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, he said "it was a moving moment in which I experienced in a tangible way all of the support of the church for my ministry."
Addressing the 20,000 people who had gathered in St. Peter's Square for the audience, the pope said he set out on the trip "to confirm Catholics in the faith, to renew and increase brotherhood with all Christians and to proclaim to all the message of Christ our hope."
Speaking in German without his prepared text, the pope said that everywhere he went in the United States "I was able to experience the fact that the faith is alive, that Christ is there today among the people, that he shows them the way and helps them to build the present as well as the future."
The pope told the German speakers that God gave him an opportunity to try to strengthen the faith of others, "but at the same time, I was strengthened and came back strengthened."
In his main audience talk, Pope Benedict said that the United States, from its founding, was built "on the foundation of a felicitous joining of religious, ethical and political principles, which still today constitutes a valid example of healthy secularity."
The United States, he said, is a place "where the religious dimension in all its variety is not only tolerated, but is valued as the spirit of the nation and as the fundamental guarantee of human rights and responsibilities."
Modern life and global realities continue to challenge the country, he said, and the Catholic Church has an obligation to offer its voice in order to help citizens build a society worthy of the human person and one that uses its resources to help others.
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As he did throughout his trip, the pope also spoke at his audience about the clergy sex abuse scandal that rocked the U.S. church.
"Thinking of the painful affair of the abuse of minors committed by ordained ministers, I wanted to express my closeness to the bishops, encouraging them in their commitment to bind up the wounds and to reinforce relations with their priests," he said.
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Respect for human rights and peace can flourish only where there is justice, "an ethical order valid for all times and all peoples," which can be summarized with Jesus' phrase, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
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In this audience I wish the pope had said something about his meeting with the survivors and the Book of Names he had received from the Archdiocese of Boston. It has been reported that he was deeply moved. I think it might have been helpful to hear him express his own feelings about these personal encounters to the 10,000 gathered in St. Peter's Square. To say I am supporting the survivors and I want each of you to as well, to me, would have been much more powerful than I am supporting my bishops and priests in their efforts.
ReplyDeleteIt is delightful, as a fellow Christian in this sadly secular culture, to see our faith in the spotlight for this long. This guy is a class act -- balancing resolute holiness with compassion and love. We must remember that, while anointed, he is human too.
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