Pope Benedict Visits the United States

By John Thavis

He came. He spoke. He conquered doubts.

On his first visit to the United States, Pope Benedict XVI left an overwhelmingly positive impression, stimulating reflection on a variety of moral and spiritual issues, but without coming off as doctrinaire.

He revealed himself as a friend of the country and its democratic traditions -- but a concerned friend, one who fears the impact of a "new secularism" and the loss of the religious voice in public affairs.

To his sometimes fractured flock, the pope challenged U.S. Catholics to end their divisions and "set aside all anger" in order to evangelize society effectively.

And on an issue that has shaken the church for six years, clerical sex abuse, he brought sharp judgment and words of healing. To many, his personal meeting with sex abuse victims brought a long-awaited sense of closure.

Pope Benedict XVI arrives to celebrate mass at Nationals Park in Washington, April 17.

The April 15-20 visit to Washington and New York had as its theme "Christ Our Hope," and included ballpark liturgies, a speech to the United Nations and meetings with youths, priests, bishops and non-Catholic representatives.

As it unfolded, Pope Benedict defined himself to a public that barely knew him. Instead of the doctrinal overseer many expected, they found a thoughtful and thought-provoking preacher of the Gospel, a man who invites rather than commands.

The pope’s first official encounter came at the White House April 16, the day he turned 81. President George W. Bush and some 9,000 well-wishers serenaded the pontiff with an impromptu "Happy Birthday" on the South Lawn.

A fife and drum corps played "Yankee Doodle," flags waved in the sunshine, and the pope and president traded tributes. When Pope Benedict finished his speech with the words, "God bless America!", the president leaped to his feet and told the pontiff: "Thank you, Your Holiness. Awesome speech."

The pope’s talk set the tone for his visit. He said he had come to the United States "as a friend ... and one with great respect for this vast pluralistic society."

Religious values helped forge "the soul of the nation" and should continue to inspire Americans as they face complex political and ethical issues today, he said. In today’s world, he said, that means defending human rights and reaching out with solidarity to the needy.

Pope Benedict picked up on those themes that evening, when he addressed the country’s bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. He arrived in his popemobile, smiling and waving to enthusiastic crowds that lined the adjacent streets and the front of the basilica.

Inside, more than 300 bishops stood and applauded the pope as he entered the crypt church, whose arches and columns recall the catacombs in Rome where the first Christians worshipped.

The pope praised Americans for having "a genuinely religious spirit," but said modern secularism and materialism can subtly influence the way people live out their faith.

Pope Benedict XVI prays inside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington on April 16.

He warned that a sense of individualism can lead Catholics to think they can pick and choose what they believe, and he added pointedly: "We've seen this emerge in an acute way in the scandal given by Catholics who promote an alleged right to abortion."

On April 17, the pope celebrated a morning Mass in Washington’s Nationals Park, where a crowd of 45,000 cheered his entry and followed the multi-ethnic liturgy.
From an altar in deep center field, the pope invoked a new chapter of the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and urged U.S. Catholics to give their contemporaries "a convincing account of the hope which inspires them."

"The world needs this witness. Who can deny that the present moment is a crossroads, not only for the church in America but also for society as a whole?" he said.

He spoke of "clear signs of a disturbing breakdown in the very foundations of society: signs of alienation, anger, and polarization on the part of many of our contemporaries; increased violence; a weakening of the moral sense; a coarsening of social relations; and a growing forgetfulness of God."

The homily was perhaps the most challenging talk of the trip, and the pope ended it by echoing the theme of his visit, asking all Catholics to bear witness to the hope that sustains them.

That evening, Pope Benedict addressed more than 400 Catholic college presidents and diocesan education representatives at the Catholic University of America. For weeks, many had speculated that the pope, a respected theologian and academic, might have harsh words of reprimand for university leaders. Instead he spoke warmly to the group, expressing his deep gratitude for their "selfless contributions" and dedication.

The pope did touch on a sensitive issue: academic freedom. On the one hand, such freedom is a great value, he said. But he said Catholic institutions betray their identity and mission when they appeal to academic freedom "to justify positions that contradict the faith and teaching of the church."

Afterward, the pope rode over to the nearby Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, where he spoke with 200 representatives of Islam, Jainism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Judaism. He told the assembly that while interreligious cooperation in peace and social efforts is important, dialogue between religions should aim at something more. "The broader purpose of dialogue is to discover truth," he said.

The pope’s stay in Washington included one unscheduled event, and it was arguably the most emotional encounter of the trip. On April 17, he met privately with five victims of priestly sexual abuse, praying with them in a chapel of his residence and listening to their stories. The group was accompanied by Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston, the archdiocese that was the epicenter of the abuse scandal.

Faith Johnston, 23, who as a young teen was abused over several months by a Colombian priest at her parish's rectory, said she clutched her mother’s rosary beads during the meeting and was "praying for the strength to say the right thing."

Johnston added, "I didn't end up saying anything (to Pope Benedict). I got up to him and I burst into tears. But honestly, I don't think any words I could have said ... my tears alone -- it just spoke so much."

The pope had addressed the sex abuse issue even on the plane carrying him from Rome to Washington, telling reporters that when he read the case histories of victims, he could not believe "that priests betrayed in this way their mission to give healing, to give the love of God to these children."

"We are deeply ashamed and will do all possible that this cannot happen in the future," he said. He lauded the U.S. bishops’ efforts to protect children and bring justice, and said seminaries would be doing more careful screening.

The pope spoke on several other occasions about the sex abuse sandal, encouraging bishops to "bind up the wounds" and telling Catholic faithful at the Washington Mass: "No words of mine could describe the pain and harm inflicted by such abuse. It is important that those who have suffered be given loving pastoral attention."

April 18 took the pope to New York and the United Nations. In a major address to the General Assembly, he made the point that neither government nor religion has a right to limit human rights, because those rights flow from the dignity of each person created in God's image.

It was a speech aimed in part at countries where minority Catholic populations live under strict Islamic law.

Pope Benedict waves during a youth rally at St. Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, NY on April 19.

During his three-hour visit, the pope stopped briefly before the war-scarred U.N. flag that had flown outside the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2003. He wrote in Latin in a visitor’s book, "Erit opus iustitiae pax," words from the Book of Isaiah which mean "Justice will bring about peace."

That evening, the pope paid a simple, moving visit at the Park East Synagogue on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The encounter marked the first time a pope has visited a Jewish place of worship in the United States, and it came a day before the start of the Jewish Passover.

Addressing the delegation of Jewish representatives as "dear friends," the pope alluded to Christianity's Jewish roots when he said, "I find it moving to recall that Jesus, as a young boy, heard the words of Scripture and prayed in a place such as this."

From there, the pope’s motorcade drove up to the Church of St. Joseph for an ecumenical prayer service with about 250 representatives of U.S. ecumenical organizations and a dozen Christian churches and denominations.

In a brief but forceful talk, the pope said the witness of Christians in the world is weakened not only by their divisions, but also by some communities turning their backs on Christian tradition.

He said it was unfortunate that some church communities have given up "the attempt to act as a unified body, choosing instead to function according to the idea of 'local options.'"

He gave no examples, but his words appeared to reflect his concern over Christian communities that have decided to ordain women to the priesthood and episcopacy or to bless homosexual unions and ordain openly gay men and women.

On April 19, celebrating Mass in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Pope Benedict urged the Catholic Church in the United States to move past divisions and scandal toward a "new sense of unity and purpose." He once again addressed the damage and suffering caused by the clerical sex abuse scandal and called for a time of purification and healing.

More generally, he said it was time to "put aside all anger and contention" inside the church and embark on a fresh mission of evangelization in society. One of the greatest disappointments over the last 40 years, he said, has been the experience of division between different groups inside the church.

The pope was celebrating the third anniversary of his election, and he received congratulations from New York Cardinal Edward M. Egan and an ovation from the 3,000 people who packed the cathedral. Many of them held aloft cameras or even stood on pews for a glimpse of the pontiff.

That afternoon, the pope traveled to the Archdiocese of New York’s seminary at Yonkers for a rally with 25,000 young people and seminarians. The event featured music, prayers and a lot of smiles, as the pope waded into the crowd briefly to greet the youths.

As usual, he gave his audience something to think about, telling them that while young people today enjoy democracy's freedom, "the power to destroy does, however, remain."

Pope Benedict XVI at Yankee Stadium April 20.

He recalled his own experience as a young boy in Germany, when the "monster" of Nazism gave rise to a sinister regime that "banished God and thus became impervious to anything true and good."

And as always, he brought the faith down to a personal level, asking the young people: "What are you seeking? What is God whispering to you? The hope which never disappoints is Jesus Christ."

Inside the seminary, the pope took time to meet with 56 disabled youths and their caregivers. He greeted the youngsters one by one, laying a hand on their heads, grasping their hands or tracing a blessing on their foreheads.

The pope’s final day in the United States opened with a somber visit to ground zero in lower Manhattan, where he prayed for the victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. At the bottom of the 70-foot-deep crater where the World Trade Center towers once stood, he spoke quietly with survivors and relatives of victims who died in the attacks.

Yankee Stadium was transformed into an open-air church for the final Mass on Sunday afternoon, with an altar at second base and the stands filled to capacity with 57,000 Catholics from major East Coast dioceses. They welcomed the pope by waving gold and white handkerchiefs and cheering "Benedetto" ("Benedict" in Italian).

The liturgy celebrated the 200th anniversaries of the archdioceses of New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Louisville, Ky., and of the elevation of Baltimore to an archdiocese.

In his sermon, the pope asked U.S. Catholics to build on the "impressive legacy" left by the country’s early church community. In particular, he told them that freedom was a gift to be used wisely in order to "build a future of hope for coming generations."
The crowd applauded loudly when the pope defended the rights of the "unborn child in the mother’s womb." And they chanted "We love you!" as the pope walked off the field at the end of the Mass and ducked into the dugout, his miter just clearing the ceiling.

A few hours later, the mosaic of encounters and liturgies completed, the pope said goodbye and his plane took off from JFK Airport for Rome. His five-day visit was over, but for all Americans the pope left behind an important gift: food for thought.