‘Keep Moving Forward’: Washington

The next morning, Francis, seated in his subcompact Fiat automobile, traveled to the White House, where President Barack Obama formally greeted the Pope.

The Holy Father said to the gathering, “American Catholics are committed to building a society which is truly tolerant and inclusive, to safeguarding the rights of individuals and communities and to rejecting every form of unjust discrimination. With countless other people of goodwill, they are likewise concerned that efforts to build a just and wisely ordered society respect their deepest concerns and the right to religious liberty.”

After a short meeting, the Pope’s motorcade took him along the Ellipse and the National Mall to a midday prayer service with the bishops at St. Matthew’s Cathedral, the seat of the archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Donald Wuerl. Later that day, the Pope presided over the canonization Mass of Franciscan missionary Father Junípero Serra, the first saint canonized on U.S. soil. The Holy Father quoted the new saint’s motto — “Keep moving forward!” — in his homily.

Pope Francis then deviated from his official schedule by visiting the Little Sisters of the Poor’s Washington community. The visit, though unplanned, spoke volumes in support of the Little Sisters, who filed a lawsuit to overturn the government’s mandate that would force them to provide contraception and abortion services in their health insurance. Papal spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said, “This is a sign, obviously, of support for them.”

On Sept. 24, for the first time in U.S. history, a pope addressed a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress. Francis urged them to work together for the common good — “protecting life at every stage of its development.” He followed that up with a visit to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington before departing for New York.

 

‘God Is Living in Our Cities’: New York

By the time Pope Francis reached New York, he seemed to be hitting his stride. Energized by the throng that greeted him along the way from John F. Kennedy Airport to the newly refurbished St. Patrick’s Cathedral, led by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Holy Father nevertheless struck a somber chord in his address at a vespers service.

“I know that, as a presbyterate in the midst of God’s people, you suffered greatly in the not-distant past by having to bear the shame of some of your brothers who harmed and scandalized the Church in the most vulnerable of her members,” he said. “I accompany you at this time of pain and difficulty, and I thank God for your faithful service to his people,” he said, adding they have “come forth from the great tribulation.”

The next day, speaking to the United Nations, the Pope edified the General Assembly by stressing the importance of “human ecology” amid technological advances.

This was followed by a touching ceremony at Ground Zero, followed by an interreligious gathering at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, where a Jewish cantor chanted a prayer for the dead.

The Holy Father showed his great love for children during a visit to Our Lady, Queen of Angels School in East Harlem, where he met with students of several Catholic schools in the archdiocese. He gave them a homework assignment: “Please pray for me.”

The capstone of his New York visit was a Mass before 18,000 people at the hallowed sports arena Madison Square Garden, where Francis exuberantly proclaimed in his homily, “God is living in our cities. The Church is living in our cities, and she wants to be like yeast in the dough. She wants to relate to everyone, to stand at everyone’s side, as she proclaims the marvels of the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Eternal Father, the Prince of Peace. ‘The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.’ And we ourselves are witnesses of that light.”

 

Pope Francis arrived in Philadelphia on Sept. 26 looking a bit fatigued from the New York leg of his journey, but being in the “Cradle of Liberty” — the site of the just-concluded World Meeting of Families Congress — energized him.

The Holy Father celebrated Mass at the venerable Cathedral-Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, where, in his homily, he discussed every person’s “mission to transmit the joy of the Gospel and to build up the Church.”

“What about you?” the Pope challenged the faithful, echoing the question Pope Leo XIII asked Philadelphian St. Katharine Drexel when she asked him about the needs of the missions. “What are you going to do?”

After Mass, the Pope received a hearty welcome at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, where he was staying. Later that day, the Holy Father gave an inspired speech on religious freedom at Independence Mall, speaking from the same lectern President Abraham Lincoln used when he delivered the Gettysburg Address. In his remarks, he delivered a stinging indictment of governments that seek to relegate the practice of religion to homes or churches.

At the Festival of Families that night, surrounded by families from around the world and international celebrities like Andrea Bocelli, Francis set aside his prepared text and presented a spontaneous, electrifying meditation on the family. At the end of the evening, he jokingly asked Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, “What time is Mass tomorrow?”

The Holy Father began the final day of his voyage meeting and praying with victims of sexual abuse. He received three women and two men — who experienced sexual abuse as minors by clergy, family members or teachers. He told them that he shared in their suffering. “I hold the stories and the suffering and the sorrow of children who were sexually abused by priests deep in my heart,” he said. “I am profoundly sorry. God weeps.”

Mass that afternoon on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway brought the visit to a Christ-centered conclusion. After a short meeting with volunteers in Philadelphia and a brief address thanking Americans for their warm reception of him, he was off to Rome.

His last words in the United States: “God bless America!”

 

Jeffrey Bruno photo