Pope Benedict XVI’s Visit to the USA, 2008 April 15-20

Homily , Mass at Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York, 2008 April 20

FROM: “Dan Frezza” <dan@frezza.org

TO: <ASSISI-L@LISTSERV.ND.EDU

DATE: 20 April 2008 15:45 [EDT

SUBJECT: Homily, Mass at Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York, 2008 April 20

Homily, Mass at Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York

During the Mass for the Fifth Sunday of Easter celebrated 20 April 2008,
the Holy Father gave the following homily.


Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In the Gospel we have just heard, Jesus tells his Apostles to put their
faith in him, for he is "the way, and the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6).
Christ is the way that leads to the Father, the truth which gives
meaning to human existence, and the source of that life which is eternal
joy with all the saints in his heavenly Kingdom. Let us take the Lord at
his word! Let us renew our faith in him and put all our hope in his
promises!

With this encouragement to persevere in the faith of Peter (cf. Lk
22:32; Mt 16:17), I greet all of you with great affection. I thank
Cardinal Egan for his cordial words of welcome in your name. At this
Mass, the Church in the United States celebrates the two hundredth
anniversary of the creation of the Sees of New York, Boston,
Philadelphia and Louisville from the mother See of Baltimore. The
presence around this altar of the Successor of Peter, his brother
bishops and priests, and deacons, men and women religious, and lay
faithful from throughout the fifty states of the Union, eloquently
manifests our communion in the Catholic faith which comes to us from the
Apostles.

Our celebration today is also a sign of the impressive growth which God
has given to the Church in your country in the past two hundred years.
 From a small flock like that described in the first reading, the Church
in America has been built up in fidelity to the twin commandment of love
of God and love of neighbor. In this land of freedom and opportunity,
the Church has united a widely diverse flock in the profession of the
faith and, through her many educational, charitable and social works,
has also contributed significantly to the growth of American society as
a whole.

This great accomplishment was not without its challenges. Today's first
reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, speaks of linguistic and
cultural tensions already present within the earliest Church community.
At the same time, it shows the power of the word of God, authoritatively
proclaimed by the Apostles and received in faith, to create a unity
which transcends the divisions arising from human limitations and
weakness. Here we are reminded of a fundamental truth: that the Church's
unity has no other basis than the Word of God, made flesh in Christ
Jesus our Lord. All external signs of identity, all structures,
associations and programs, valuable or even essential as they may be,
ultimately exist only to support and foster the deeper unity which, in
Christ, is God's indefectible gift to his Church.

The first reading also makes clear, as we see from the imposition of
hands on the first deacons, that the Church's unity is "apostolic". It
is a visible unity, grounded in the Apostles whom Christ chose and
appointed as witnesses to his resurrection, and it is born of what the
Scriptures call "the obedience of faith" (Rom 1:5; cf. Acts 6:7).

"Authority" … "obedience". To be frank, these are not easy words to
speak nowadays. Words like these represent a "stumbling stone" for many
of our contemporaries, especially in a society which rightly places a
high value on personal freedom. Yet, in the light of our faith in Jesus
Christ - "the way and the truth and the life" - we come to see the
fullest meaning, value, and indeed beauty, of those words. The Gospel
teaches us that true freedom, the freedom of the children of God, is
found only in the self-surrender which is part of the mystery of love.
Only by losing ourselves, the Lord tells us, do we truly find ourselves
(cf. Lk 17:33). True freedom blossoms when we turn away from the burden
of sin, which clouds our perceptions and weakens our resolve, and find
the source of our ultimate happiness in him who is infinite love,
infinite freedom, infinite life. "In his will is our peace".

Real freedom, then, is God's gracious gift, the fruit of conversion to
his truth, the truth which makes us free (cf. Jn 8:32). And this freedom
in truth brings in its wake a new and liberating way of seeing reality.
When we put on "the mind of Christ" (cf. Phil 2:5), new horizons open
before us! In the light of faith, within the communion of the Church, we
also find the inspiration and strength to become a leaven of the Gospel
in the world. We become the light of the world, the salt of the earth
(cf. Mt 5:13-14), entrusted with the "apostolate" of making our own
lives, and the world in which we live, conform ever more fully to God's
saving plan.

This magnificent vision of a world being transformed by the liberating
truth of the Gospel is reflected in the description of the Church found
in today's second reading. The Apostle tells us that Christ, risen from
the dead, is the keystone of a great temple which is even now rising in
the Spirit. And we, the members of his body, through Baptism have become
"living stones" in that temple, sharing in the life of God by grace,
blessed with the freedom of the sons of God, and empowered to offer
spiritual sacrifices pleasing to him (cf. 1 Pet 2:5). And what is this
offering which we are called to make, if not to direct our every
thought, word and action to the truth of the Gospel and to harness all
our energies in the service of God's Kingdom? Only in this way can we
build with God, on the one foundation which is Christ (cf. 1 Cor 3:11).
Only in this way can we build something that will truly endure. Only in
this way can our lives find ultimate meaning and bear lasting fruit.

Today we recall the bicentennial of a watershed in the history of the
Church in the United States: its first great chapter of growth. In these
two hundred years, the face of the Catholic community in your country
has changed greatly. We think of the successive waves of immigrants
whose traditions have so enriched the Church in America. We think of the
strong faith which built up the network of churches, educational,
healthcare and social institutions which have long been the hallmark of
the Church in this land. We think also of those countless fathers and
mothers who passed on the faith to their children, the steady ministry
of the many priests who devoted their lives to the care of souls, and
the incalculable contribution made by so many men and women religious,
who not only taught generations of children how to read and write, but
also inspired in them a lifelong desire to know God, to love him and to
serve him. How many "spiritual sacrifices pleasing to God" have been
offered up in these two centuries! In this land of religious liberty,
Catholics found freedom not only to practice their faith, but also to
participate fully in civic life, bringing their deepest moral
convictions to the public square and cooperating with their neighbors in
shaping a vibrant, democratic society. Today's celebration is more than
an occasion of gratitude for graces received. It is also a summons to
move forward with firm resolve to use wisely the blessings of freedom,
in order to build a future of hope for coming generations.

"You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people he
claims for his own, to proclaim his glorious works" (1 Pet 2:9). These
words of the Apostle Peter do not simply remind us of the dignity which
is ours by God's grace; they also challenge us to an ever greater
fidelity to the glorious inheritance which we have received in Christ
(cf. Eph 1:18). They challenge us to examine our consciences, to purify
our hearts, to renew our baptismal commitment to reject Satan and all
his empty promises. They challenge us to be a people of joy, heralds of
the unfailing hope (cf. Rom 5:5) born of faith in God's word, and trust
in his promises.

Each day, throughout this land, you and so many of your neighbors pray
to the Father in the Lord's own words: "Thy Kingdom come". This prayer
needs to shape the mind and heart of every Christian in this nation. It
needs to bear fruit in the way you lead your lives and in the way you
build up your families and your communities. It needs to create new
"settings of hope" (cf. Spe Salvi, 32ff.) where God's Kingdom becomes
present in all its saving power.

Praying fervently for the coming of the Kingdom also means being
constantly alert for the signs of its presence, and working for its
growth in every sector of society. It means facing the challenges of
present and future with confidence in Christ's victory and a commitment
to extending his reign. It means not losing heart in the face of
resistance, adversity and scandal. It means overcoming every separation
between faith and life, and countering false gospels of freedom and
happiness. It also means rejecting a false dichotomy between faith and
political life, since, as the Second Vatican Council put it, "there is
no human activity - even in secular affairs - which can be withdrawn
from God's dominion" (Lumen Gentium, 36). It means working to enrich
American society and culture with the beauty and truth of the Gospel,
and never losing sight of that great hope which gives meaning and value
to all the other hopes which inspire our lives.

And this, dear friends, is the particular challenge which the Successor
of Saint Peter sets before you today. As "a chosen people, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation", follow faithfully in the footsteps of those
who have gone before you! Hasten the coming of God's Kingdom in this
land! Past generations have left you an impressive legacy. In our day
too, the Catholic community in this nation has been outstanding in its
prophetic witness in the defense of life, in the education of the young,
in care for the poor, the sick and the stranger in your midst. On these
solid foundations, the future of the Church in America must even now
begin to rise!

Yesterday, not far from here, I was moved by the joy, the hope and the
generous love of Christ which I saw on the faces of the many young
people assembled in Dunwoodie. They are the Church's future, and they
deserve all the prayer and support that you can give them. And so I wish
to close by adding a special word of encouragement to them. My dear
young friends, like the seven men, "filled with the Spirit and wisdom"
whom the Apostles charged with care for the young Church, may you step
forward and take up the responsibility which your faith in Christ sets
before you! May you find the courage to proclaim Christ, "the same,
yesterday, and today and for ever" and the unchanging truths which have
their foundation in him (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 10; Heb 13:8). These are
the truths that set us free! They are the truths which alone can
guarantee respect for the inalienable dignity and rights of each man,
woman and child in our world - including the most defenseless of all
human beings, the unborn child in the mother's womb. In a world where,
as Pope John Paul II, speaking in this very place, reminded us, Lazarus
continues to stand at our door (Homily at Yankee Stadium, October 2,
1979, No. 7), let your faith and love bear rich fruit in outreach to the
poor, the needy and those without a voice. Young men and women of
America, I urge you: open your hearts to the Lord's call to follow him
in the priesthood and the religious life. Can there be any greater mark
of love than this: to follow in the footsteps of Christ, who was willing
to lay down his life for his friends (cf. Jn 15:13)?

In today's Gospel, the Lord promises his disciples that they will
perform works even greater than his (cf. Jn 14:12). Dear friends, only
God in his providence knows what works his grace has yet to bring forth
in your lives and in the life of the Church in the United States. Yet
Christ's promise fills us with sure hope. Let us now join our prayers to
his, as living stones in that spiritual temple which is his one, holy,
catholic and apostolic Church. Let us lift our eyes to him, for even now
he is preparing for us a place in his Father's house. And empowered by
his Holy Spirit, let us work with renewed zeal for the spread of his
Kingdom.

"Happy are you who believe!" (cf. 1 Pet 2:7). Let us turn to Jesus! He
alone is the way that leads to eternal happiness, the truth who
satisfies the deepest longings of every heart, and the life who brings
ever new joy and hope, to us and to our world. Amen.

(continuing in Spanish)

Queridos hermanos y hermanas en el Señor:

Les saludo con afecto y me alegro de celebrar esta Santa Misa para dar
gracias a Dios por el bicentenario del momento en que empezó a
desarrollarse la Iglesia Católica en esta Nación. Al mirar el camino de
fe recorrido en estos años, no exento también de dificultades, alabamos
al Señor por los frutos que la Palabra de Dios ha dado en estas tierras
y le manifestamos nuestro deseo de que Cristo, Camino, Verdad y Vida,
sea cada vez más conocido y amado.

Aquí, en este País de libertad, quiero proclamar con fuerza que la
Palabra de Cristo no elimina nuestras aspiraciones a una vida plena y
libre, sino que nos descubre nuestra verdadera dignidad de hijos de Dios
y nos alienta a luchar contra todo aquello que nos esclaviza, empezando
por nuestro propio egoísmo y caprichos. Al mismo tiempo, nos anima a
manifestar nuestra fe a través de nuestra vida de caridad y a hacer que
nuestras comunidades eclesiales sean cada día más acogedoras y fraternas.

Sobre todo a los jóvenes les confío asumir el gran reto que entraña
creer en Cristo y lograr que esa fe se manifieste en una cercanía
efectiva hacia los pobres. También en una respuesta generosa a las
llamadas que Él sigue formulando para dejarlo todo y emprender una vida
de total consagración a Dios y a la Iglesia, en la vida sacerdotal o
religiosa.

Queridos hermanos y hermanas, les invito a mirar el futuro con
esperanza, permitiendo que Jesús entre en sus vidas. Solamente Él es el
camino que conduce a la felicidad que no acaba, la verdad que satisface
las más nobles expectativas humanas y la vida colmada de gozo para bien
de la Iglesia y el mundo. Que Dios les bendiga.

Text provided by EWTN