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Return to the Sacrament of Penance, continue being
Gospel hope in America On Thursday morning, 17 April
[2008], the Holy Father went to Washington's Nationals Park Stadium, the
most modern sports facility in the U.S. with a capacity of 45,000 and
home to the Nationals baseball team. Here the Pope was greeted by
Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty.
The Pontiff then celebrated a Mass of the Holy Spirit, offered for
the faithful of the Archdiocese of Washington. Concelebrants included
Archbishop Wuerl and Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of State.
Here is the Holy Father's Homily.
Dear Brothers and
Sisters in Christ,
"Peace be with you!" (Jn 20:19). With these, the first words of the
Risen Lord to his disciples, I greet all of you in the joy of this
Easter season. Before all else, I thank God for the blessing of being in
your midst. I am particularly grateful to Archbishop Wuerl for his kind
words of welcome.
Our Mass today brings the Church in the United States back to its roots
in nearby Maryland, and commemorates the bicentennial of the first
chapter of its remarkable growth
—
the division by my predecessor, Pope Pius VII, of the original Diocese
of Baltimore and the establishment of the Dioceses of Boston, Bardstown
(now Louisville), New York and Philadelphia. Two hundred years later,
the Church in America can rightfully praise the accomplishment of past
generations in bringing together widely differing immigrant groups
within the unity of the Catholic faith and in a common commitment to the
spread of the Gospel. At the same time, conscious of its rich diversity,
the Catholic community in this country has come to appreciate ever more
fully the importance of each individual and group offering its own
particular gifts to the whole. The Church in the United States is now
called to look to the future, firmly grounded in the faith passed on by
previous generations, and ready to meet new challenges
—
challenges no less demanding than those faced by your forebears
—
with the hope born of God's love, poured into our hearts by the Holy
Spirit (cf. Rom 5:5).
In the exercise of my ministry as the Successor of Peter, I have come to
America to confirm you, my brothers and sisters, in the faith of the
Apostles (cf. Lk 22:32). I have come to proclaim anew, as Peter
proclaimed on the day of Pentecost, that Jesus Christ is Lord and
Messiah, risen from the dead, seated in glory at the right hand of the
Father, and established as judge of the living and the dead (cf. Acts
2:14ff.). I have come to repeat the Apostle's urgent call to conversion
and the forgiveness of sins, and to implore from the Lord a new
outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church in this country. As we
have heard throughout this Easter season, the Church was born of the
Spirit's gift of repentance and faith in the risen Lord. In every age
she is impelled by the same Spirit to bring to men and women of every
race, language and people (cf. Rev 5:9) the good news of our
reconciliation with God in Christ.
Spirit strengthens Gospel witness
The readings of today's Mass invite us to consider the growth of the
Church in America as one chapter in the greater story of the Church's
expansion following the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. In
those readings we see the inseparable link between the risen Lord, the
gift of the Spirit for the forgiveness of sins, and the mystery of the
Church. Christ established his Church on the foundation of the Apostles
(cf. Rev 21:14) as a visible, structured community which is at the same
time a spiritual communion, a mystical body enlivened by the Spirit's
manifold gifts, and the sacrament of salvation for all humanity (cf.
Lumen Gentium, 8). In every time and place, the Church is called to grow
in unity through constant conversion to Christ, whose saving work is
proclaimed by the Successors of the Apostles and celebrated in the
sacraments. This unity, in turn, gives rise to an unceasing missionary
outreach, as the Spirit spurs believers to proclaim "the great works of
God" and to invite all people to enter the community of those saved by
the blood of Christ and granted new life in his Spirit.
I pray, then, that this significant anniversary in the life of the
Church in the United States, and the presence of the Successor of Peter
in your midst, will be an occasion for all Catholics to reaffirm their
unity in the apostolic faith, to offer their contemporaries a convincing
account of the hope which inspires them (cf. 1 Pet 3:15), and to be
renewed in missionary zeal for the extension of God's Kingdom.
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? It is a time of great promise, as we see the human family in many
ways drawing closer together and becoming ever more interdependent. Yet
at the same time we see 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 Church, too, sees signs of immense
promise in her many strong parishes and vital movements, in the
enthusiasm for the faith shown by so many young people, in the number of
those who each year embrace the Catholic faith, and in a greater
interest in prayer and catechesis. At the same time she senses, often
painfully, the presence of division and polarization in her midst, as
well as the troubling realization that many of the baptized, rather than
acting as a spiritual leaven in the world, are inclined to embrace
attitudes contrary to the truth of the Gospel.
"Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth!" (cf. Ps
104:30). The words of today's Responsorial Psalm are a prayer which
rises up from the heart of the Church in every time and place. They
remind us that the Holy Spirit has been poured out as the first fruits
of a new creation, "new heavens and a new earth" (cf. 2 Pet 3:13; Rev
21:1), in which God's peace will reign and the human family will be
reconciled in justice and love. We have heard Saint Paul tell us that
all creation is even now "groaning" in expectation of that true freedom
which is God's gift to his children (Rom 8:21-22), a freedom which
enables us to live in conformity to his will. Today let us pray
fervently that the Church in America will be renewed in that same
Spirit, and sustained in her mission of proclaiming the Gospel to a
world that longs for genuine freedom (cf. Jn 8:32), authentic happiness,
and the fulfillment of its deepest aspirations!
A genuinely Catholic mindset
Here I wish to offer a special word of gratitude and encouragment to all
those who have taken up the challenge of the Second Vatican Council, so
often reiterated by Pope John Paul II, and committed their lives to the
new evangelization. I thank my brother Bishops, priests and deacons, men
and women religious, parents, teachers and catechists. The fidelity and
courage with which the Church in this country will respond to the
challenges raised by an increasingly secular and materialistic culture
will depend in large part upon your own fidelity in handing on the
treasure of our Catholic faith. Young people need to be helped to
discern the path that leads to true freedom: the path of a sincere and
generous imitation of Christ, the path of commitment to justice and
peace. Much progress has been made in developing solid programs of
catechesis, yet so much more remains to be done in forming the hearts
and minds of the young in knowledge and love of the Lord. The challenges
confronting us require a comprehensive and sound instruction in the
truths of the faith. But they also call for cultivating a mindset, an
intellectual "culture", which is genuinely Catholic, confident in the
profound harmony of faith and reason, and prepared to bring the richness
of faith's vision to bear on the urgent issues which affect the future
of American society.
Dear friends, my visit to the United States is meant to be a witness to
"Christ our Hope". Americans have always been a people of hope: your
ancestors came to this country with the expectation of finding new
freedom and opportunity, while the vastness of the unexplored wilderness
inspired in them the hope of being able to start completely anew,
building a new nation on new foundations. To be sure, this promise was
not experienced by all the inhabitants of this land; one thinks of the
injustices endured by the native American peoples and by those brought
here forcibly from Africa as slaves. Yet hope, hope for the future, is
very much a part of the American character. And the Christian virtue of
hope —
the hope poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, the hope which
supernaturally purifies and corrects our aspirations by focusing them on
the Lord and his saving plan
—
that hope has also marked, and continues to mark, the life of the
Catholic community in this country.
It is in the context of this hope born of God's love and fidelity that I
acknowledge the pain which the Church in America has experienced as a
result of the sexual abuse of minors. 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. Nor can I
adequately describe the damage that has occurred within the community of
the Church. Great efforts have already been made to deal honestly and
fairly with this tragic situation, and to ensure that children
—
whom our Lord loves so deeply (cf. Mk 10:14), and who are our greatest
treasure —
can grow up in a safe environment. These efforts to protect children
must continue. Yesterday I spoke with your Bishops about this. Today I
encourage each of you to do what you can to foster healing and
reconciliation, and to assist those who have been hurt. Also, I ask you
to love your priests, and to affirm them in the excellent work that they
do. And above all, pray that the Holy Spirit will pour out his gifts
upon the Church, the gifts that lead to conversion, forgiveness and
growth in holiness.
Saint Paul speaks, as we heard in the second reading, of a kind of
prayer which arises from the depths of our hearts in sighs too deep for
words, in "groanings" (Rom 8:26) inspired by the Spirit. This is a
prayer which yearns, in the midst of chastisement, for the fulfillment
of God's promises. It is a prayer of unfailing hope, but also one of
patient endurance and, often, accompanied by suffering for the truth.
Through this prayer, we share in the mystery of Christ's own weakness
and suffering, while trusting firmly in the victory of his Cross. With
this prayer, may the Church in America embrace ever more fully the way
of conversion and fidelity to the demands of the Gospel. And may all
Catholics experience the consolation of hope, and the Spirit's gifts of
joy and strength.
Return to sacramental Confession
In today's Gospel, the risen Lord bestows the gift of the Holy Spirit
upon the Apostles and grants them the authority to forgive sins. Through
the surpassing power of Christ's grace, entrusted to frail human
ministers, the Church is constantly reborn and each of us is given the
hope of a new beginning. Let us trust in the Spirit's power to inspire
conversion, to heal every wound, to overcome every division, and to
inspire new life and freedom. How much we need these gifts! And how
close at hand they are, particularly in the sacrament of Penance! The
liberating power of this sacrament, in which our honest confession of
sin is met by God's merciful word of pardon and peace, needs to be
rediscovered and reappropriated by every Catholic. To a great extent,
the renewal of the Church in America depends on the renewal of the
practice of Penance and the growth in holiness which that sacrament both
inspires and accomplishes.
"In hope we were saved!" (Rom 8:24)." As the Church in the United States
gives thanks for the blessings of the past two hundred years, I invite
you, your families, and every parish and religious community, to trust
in the power of grace to create a future of promise for God's people in
this country. I ask you, in the Lord Jesus, to set aside all division
and to work with joy to prepare a way for him, in fidelity to his word
and in constant conversion to his will. Above all, I urge you to
continue to be a leaven of evangelical hope in American society,
striving to bring the light and truth of the Gospel to the task of
building an ever more just and free world for generations yet to come.
Those who have hope must live different lives! (cf. Spe Salvi, 2). By
your prayers, by the witness of your faith, by the fruitfulness of your
charity, may you point the way towards that vast horizon of hope which
God is even now opening up to his Church, and indeed to all humanity:
the vision of a world reconciled and renewed in Christ Jesus, our
Savior. To him be all honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.
* * *
Queridos hermanos y hermanas de lengua española:
Deseo saludarles con las mismas palabras que Cristo Resucitado dirigió a
los apóstoles: "Paz a ustedes" (Jn 20,19). Que la alegría de saber que
el Señor ha triunfado sobre la muerte y el pecado les ayude a ser, allá
donde se encuentren, testigos de su amor y sembradores de la esperanza
que Él vino a traernos y que jamás defrauda.
No se dejen vencer por el pesimismo, la inercia o los problemas. Antes
bien, fieles a los compromisos que adquirieron en su bautismo,
profundicen cada día en el conocimiento de Cristo y permitan que su
corazón quede conquistado por su amor y por su perdón.
La Iglesia en los Estados Unidos, acogiendo en su seno a tantos de sus
hijos emigrantes, ha ido creciendo gracias también a la vitalidad del
testimonio de fe de los fieles de lengua española. Por eso, el Señor les
llama a seguir contribuyendo al futuro de la Iglesia en este País y a la
difusión del Evangelio. Sólo si están unidos a Cristo y entre ustedes,
su testimonio evangelizador será creíble y florecerá en copiosos frutos
de paz y reconciliación en medio de un mundo muchas veces marcado por
divisiones y enfrentamientos.
La Iglesia espera mucho de ustedes. No la defrauden en su donación
generosa. "Lo que han recibido gratis, denlo gratis" (Mt 10,8).
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