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

Meeting with Young People and Seminarians, St. Joseph Seminary, Yonkers, New York, 2008 April 19

FROM: “Dan Frezza” <dan@frezza.org>

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

DATE: 20 April 2008 10:08 [EDET]

SUBJECT: Meeting with Young People and Seminarians

MEETING WITH YOUNG PEOPLE AND SEMINARIANS

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI

Saint Joseph Seminary, Yonkers, New York
Saturday, 19 April 2008


Your Eminence,
Dear Brother Bishops,
Dear Young Friends,

"Proclaim the Lord Christ . and always have your answer ready for people
who ask the reason for the hope that is within you" (1 Pet 3:15).  With
these words from the First Letter of Peter I greet each of you with
heartfelt affection.  I thank Cardinal Egan for his kind words of
welcome and I also thank the representatives chosen from among you for
their gestures of welcome.  To Bishop Walsh, Rector of Saint Joseph
Seminary, staff and seminarians, I offer my special greetings and gratitude.

Young friends, I am very happy to have the opportunity to speak with
you.  Please pass on my warm greetings to your family members and
relatives, and to the teachers and staff of the various schools,
colleges and universities you attend.  I know that many people have
worked hard to ensure that our gathering could take place.  I am most
grateful to them all.  Also, I wish to acknowledge your singing to me
Happy Birthday!  Thank you for this moving gesture; I give you all an "A
plus" for your German pronunciation!  This evening I wish to share with
you some thoughts about being disciples of Jesus Christ ? walking in the
Lord's footsteps, our own lives become a journey of hope.

In front of you are the images of six ordinary men and women who grew up
to lead extraordinary lives.  The Church honors them as Venerable,
Blessed, or Saint: each responded to the Lord's call to a life of
charity and each served him here, in the alleys, streets and suburbs of
New York.  I am struck by what a remarkably diverse group they are:
poor and rich, lay men and women - one a wealthy wife and mother -
priests and sisters, immigrants from afar, the daughter of a Mohawk
warrior father and Algonquin mother, another a Haitian slave, and a
Cuban intellectual.

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, Saint John
Neumann, Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, Venerable Pierre Toussaint, and
Padre Felix Varela: any one of us could be among them, for there is no
stereotype to this group, no single mold.  Yet a closer look reveals
that there are common elements.  Inflamed with the love of Jesus, their
lives became remarkable journeys of hope.  For some, that meant leaving
home and embarking on a pilgrim journey of thousands of miles.  For each
there was an act of abandonment to God, in the confidence that he is the
final destination of every pilgrim.  And all offered an outstretched
hand of hope to those they encountered along the way, often awakening in
them a life of faith.  Through orphanages, schools and hospitals, by
befriending the poor, the sick and the marginalized, and through the
compelling witness that comes from walking humbly in the footsteps of
Jesus, these six people laid open the way of faith, hope and charity to
countless individuals, including perhaps your own ancestors.

And what of today?  Who bears witness to the Good News of Jesus on the
streets of New York, in the troubled neighborhoods of large cities, in
the places where the young gather, seeking someone in whom they can
trust?  God is our origin and our destination, and Jesus the way.  The
path of that journey twists and turns ? just as it did for our saints ?
through the joys and the trials of ordinary, everyday life: within your
families, at school or college, during your recreation activities, and
in your parish communities.  All these places are marked by the culture
in which you are growing up.  As young Americans you are offered many
opportunities for personal development, and you are brought up with a
sense of generosity, service and fairness.  Yet you do not need me to
tell you that there are also difficulties:  activities and mindsets
which stifle hope, pathways which seem to lead to happiness and
fulfillment but in fact end only in confusion and fear.

My own years as a teenager were marred by a sinister regime that thought
it had all the answers;  its influence grew - infiltrating schools and
civic bodies, as well as politics and even religion - before it was
fully recognized for the monster it was.  It banished God and thus
became impervious to anything true and good.  Many of your grandparents
and great-grandparents will have recounted the horror of the destruction
that ensued.  Indeed, some of them came to America precisely to escape
such terror.

Let us thank God that today many people of your generation are able to
enjoy the liberties which have arisen through the extension of democracy
and respect for human rights.  Let us thank God for all those who strive
to ensure that you can grow up in an environment that nurtures what is
beautiful, good, and true:  your parents and grandparents, your teachers
and priests, those civic leaders who seek what is right and just.

The power to destroy does, however, remain.  To pretend otherwise would
be to fool ourselves.  Yet, it never triumphs; it is defeated.  This is
the essence of the hope that defines us as Christians; and the Church
recalls this most dramatically during the Easter Triduum and celebrates
it with great joy in the season of Easter!  The One who shows us the way
beyond death is the One who shows us how to overcome destruction and
fear: thus it is Jesus who is the true teacher of life (cf. Spe Salvi,
6).  His death and resurrection mean that we can say to the Father "you
have restored us to life!" (Prayer after Communion, Good Friday).  And
so, just a few weeks ago, during the beautiful Easter Vigil liturgy, it
was not from despair or fear that we cried out to God for our world, but
with hope-filled confidence: dispel the darkness of our heart! dispel
the darkness of our minds! (cf. Prayer at the Lighting of the Easter
Candle).

What might that darkness be?  What happens when people, especially the
most vulnerable, encounter a clenched fist of repression or manipulation
rather than a hand of hope?  A first group of examples pertains to the
heart.  Here, the dreams and longings that young people pursue can so
easily be shattered or destroyed.  I am thinking of those affected by
drug and substance abuse, homelessness and poverty, racism, violence,
and degradation - especially of girls and women.  While the causes of
these problems are complex, all have in common a poisoned attitude of
mind which results in people being treated as mere objects ? a
callousness of heart takes hold which first ignores, then ridicules, the
God-given dignity of every human being.  Such tragedies also point to
what might have been and what could be, were there other hands - your
hands - reaching out.  I encourage you to invite others, especially the
vulnerable and the innocent, to join you along the way of goodness and hope.

The second area of darkness - that which affects the mind - often goes
unnoticed, and for this reason is particularly sinister.  The
manipulation of truth distorts our perception of reality, and tarnishes
our imagination and aspirations.  I have already mentioned the many
liberties which you are fortunate enough to enjoy.  The fundamental
importance of freedom must be rigorously safeguarded.  It is no surprise
then that numerous individuals and groups vociferously claim their
freedom in the public forum.  Yet freedom is a delicate value.  It can
be misunderstood or misused so as to lead not to the happiness which we
all expect it to yield, but to a dark arena of manipulation in which our
understanding of self and the world becomes confused, or even distorted
by those who have an ulterior agenda.

Have you noticed how often the call for freedom is made without ever
referring to the truth of the human person?  Some today argue that
respect for freedom of the individual makes it wrong to seek truth,
including the truth about what is good.  In some circles to speak of
truth is seen as controversial or divisive, and consequently best kept
in the private sphere.  And in truth's place - or better said its
absence - an idea has spread which, in giving value to everything
indiscriminately, claims to assure freedom and to liberate conscience.
This we call relativism.  But what purpose has a "freedom" which, in
disregarding truth, pursues what is false or wrong?  How many young
people have been offered a hand which in the name of freedom or
experience has led them to addiction, to moral or intellectual
confusion, to hurt, to a loss of self-respect, even to despair and so
tragically and sadly to the taking of their own life?  Dear friends,
truth is not an imposition.  Nor is it simply a set of rules.  It is a
discovery of the One who never fails us; the One whom we can always
trust.  In seeking truth we come to live by belief because ultimately
truth is a person: Jesus Christ.  That is why authentic freedom is not
an opting out.  It is an opting in; nothing less than letting go of self
and allowing oneself to be drawn into Christ's very being for others
(cf. Spe Salvi, 28).

How then can we as believers help others to walk the path of freedom
which brings fulfillment and lasting happiness?  Let us again turn to
the saints.  How did their witness truly free others from the darkness
of heart and mind?  The answer is found in the kernel of their faith;
the kernel of our faith.  The Incarnation, the birth of Jesus, tells us
that God does indeed find a place among us.  Though the inn is full, he
enters through the stable, and there are people who see his light.  They
recognize Herod's dark closed world for what it is, and instead follow
the bright guiding star of the night sky.  And what shines forth?  Here
you might recall the prayer uttered on the most holy night of Easter:
"Father we share in the light of your glory through your Son the light
of the world . inflame us with your hope!" (Blessing of the Fire).  And
so, in solemn procession with our lighted candles we pass the light of
Christ among us.  It is "the light which dispels all evil, washes guilt
away, restores lost innocence, brings mourners joy, casts out hatred,
brings us peace, and humbles earthly pride" (Exsultet).  This is
Christ's light at work.  This is the way of the saints.  It is a
magnificent vision of hope - Christ's light beckons you to be guiding
stars for others, walking Christ's way of forgiveness, reconciliation,
humility, joy and peace.

At times, however, we are tempted to close in on ourselves, to doubt the
strength of Christ's radiance, to limit the horizon of hope.  Take
courage!  Fix your gaze on our saints.  The diversity of their
experience of God's presence prompts us to discover anew the breadth and
depth of Christianity.  Let your imaginations soar freely along the
limitless expanse of the horizons of Christian discipleship.  Sometimes
we are looked upon as people who speak only of prohibitions.  Nothing
could be further from the truth!  Authentic Christian discipleship is
marked by a sense of wonder.  We stand before the God we know and love
as a friend, the vastness of his creation, and the beauty of our
Christian faith.

Dear friends, the example of the saints invites us, then, to consider
four essential aspects of the treasure of our faith: personal prayer and
silence, liturgical prayer, charity in action, and vocations.

What matters most is that you develop your personal relationship with
God.  That relationship is expressed in prayer.  God by his very nature
speaks, hears, and replies.  Indeed, Saint Paul reminds us: we can and
should "pray constantly" (1 Thess 5:17).  Far from turning in on
ourselves or withdrawing from the ups and downs of life, by praying we
turn towards God and through him to each other, including the
marginalized and those following ways other than God's path (cf. Spe
Salvi, 33).  As the saints teach us so vividly, prayer becomes hope in
action.  Christ was their constant companion, with whom they conversed
at every step of their journey for others.

There is another aspect of prayer which we need to remember: silent
contemplation.  Saint John, for example, tells us that to embrace God's
revelation we must first listen, then respond by proclaiming what we
have heard and seen (cf. 1 Jn 1:2-3; Dei Verbum, 1).  Have we perhaps
lost something of the art of listening?  Do you leave space to hear
God's whisper, calling you forth into goodness?  Friends, do not be
afraid of silence or stillness, listen to God, adore him in the
Eucharist.  Let his word shape your journey as an unfolding of holiness.

In the liturgy we find the whole Church at prayer.  The word liturgy
means the participation of God's people in "the work of Christ the
Priest and of His Body which is the Church" (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 7).
  What is that work?  First of all it refers to Christ's Passion, his
Death and Resurrection, and his Ascension - what we call the Paschal
Mystery.  It also refers to the celebration of the liturgy itself.  The
two meanings are in fact inseparably linked because this "work of Jesus"
is the real content of the liturgy.  Through the liturgy, the "work of
Jesus" is continually brought into contact with history; with our lives
in order to shape them.  Here we catch another glimpse of the grandeur
of our Christian faith.  Whenever you gather for Mass, when you go to
Confession, whenever you celebrate any of the sacraments, Jesus is at
work.  Through the Holy Spirit, he draws you to himself, into his
sacrificial love of the Father which becomes love for all.  We see then
that the Church's liturgy is a ministry of hope for humanity.  Your
faithful participation, is an active hope which helps to keep the world
- saints and sinners alike - open to God; this is the truly human hope
we offer everyone (cf. Spe Salvi, 34).

Your personal prayer, your times of silent contemplation, and your
participation in the Church's liturgy, bring you closer to God and also
prepare you to serve others.  The saints accompanying us this evening
show us that the life of faith and hope is also a life of charity.
Contemplating Jesus on the Cross we see love in its most radical form.
We can begin to imagine the path of love along which we must move (cf.
Deus Caritas Est, 12).  The opportunities to make this journey are
abundant.  Look about you with Christ's eyes, listen with his ears, feel
and think with his heart and mind.  Are you ready to give all as he did
for truth and justice?  Many of the examples of the suffering which our
saints responded to with compassion are still found here in this city
and beyond.  And new injustices have arisen: some are complex and stem
from the exploitation of the heart and manipulation of the mind; even
our common habitat, the earth itself, groans under the weight of
consumerist greed and irresponsible exploitation.  We must listen
deeply.  We must respond with a renewed social action that stems from
the universal love that knows no bounds. In this way, we ensure that our
works of mercy and justice become hope in action for others.

Dear young people, finally I wish to share a word about vocations.
First of all my thoughts go to your parents, grandparents and
godparents.  They have been your primary educators in the faith.  By
presenting you for baptism, they made it possible for you to receive the
greatest gift of your life.  On that day you entered into the holiness
of God himself.  You became adoptive sons and daughters of the Father.
You were incorporated into Christ.  You were made a dwelling place of
his Spirit.  Let us pray for mothers and fathers throughout the world,
particularly those who may be struggling in any way - socially,
materially, spiritually.  Let us honor the vocation of matrimony and the
dignity of family life.  Let us always appreciate that it is in families
that vocations are given life.

Gathered here at Saint Joseph Seminary, I greet the seminarians present
and indeed encourage all seminarians throughout America.  I am glad to
know that your numbers are increasing!  The People of God look to you to
be holy priests, on a daily journey of conversion, inspiring in others
the desire to enter more deeply into the ecclesial life of believers.  I
urge you to deepen your friendship with Jesus the Good Shepherd.  Talk
heart to heart with him.  Reject any temptation to ostentation,
careerism, or conceit.  Strive for a pattern of life truly marked by
charity, chastity and humility, in imitation of Christ, the Eternal High
Priest, of whom you are to become living icons (cf. Pastores Dabo Vobis,
33).  Dear seminarians, I pray for you daily.  Remember that what counts
before the Lord is to dwell in his love and to make his love shine forth
for others.

Religious Sisters, Brothers and Priests contribute greatly to the
mission of the Church.  Their prophetic witness is marked by a profound
conviction of the primacy with which the Gospel shapes Christian life
and transforms society.  Today, I wish to draw your attention to the
positive spiritual renewal which Congregations are undertaking in
relation to their charism.  The word charism means a gift freely and
graciously given.  Charisms are bestowed by the Holy Spirit, who
inspires founders and foundresses, and shapes Congregations with a
subsequent spiritual heritage.  The wondrous array of charisms proper to
each Religious Institute is an extraordinary spiritual treasury.
Indeed, the history of the Church is perhaps most beautifully portrayed
through the history of her schools of spirituality, most of which stem
from the saintly lives of founders and foundresses.  Through the
discovery of charisms, which yield such a breadth of spiritual wisdom, I
am sure that some of you young people will be drawn to a life of
apostolic or contemplative service.  Do not be shy to speak with
Religious Brothers, Sisters or Priests about the charism and
spirituality of their Congregation.  No perfect community exists, but it
is fidelity to a founding charism, not to particular individuals, that
the Lord calls you to discern.  Have courage!  You too can make your
life a gift of self for the love of the Lord Jesus and, in him, of every
member of the human family (cf. Vita Consecrata, 3).

Friends, again I ask you, what about today?  What are you seeking?  What
is God whispering to you?  The hope which never disappoints is Jesus
Christ.  The saints show us the selfless love of his way.  As disciples
of Christ, their extraordinary journeys unfolded within the community of
hope, which is the Church.  It is from within the Church that you too
will find the courage and support to walk the way of the Lord.
Nourished by personal prayer, prompted in silence, shaped by the
Church's liturgy you will discover the particular vocation God has for
you.  Embrace it with joy.  You are Christ's disciples today.  Shine his
light upon this great city and beyond.  Show the world the reason for
the hope that resonates within you.  Tell others about the truth that
sets you free.  With these sentiments of great hope in you I bid you
farewell, until we meet again in Sydney this July for World Youth Day!
And as a pledge of my love for you and your families, I gladly impart my
Apostolic Blessing.

* * *

Queridos Seminaristas, queridos jóvenes:

Es para mí una gran alegría poder encontrarme con todos ustedes en este
día de mi cumpleaños. Gracias por su acogida y por el cariño que me han
demostrado.

Les animo a abrirle al Señor su corazón para que Él lo llene por
completo y con el fuego de su amor lleven su Evangelio a todos los
barrios de Nueva York.

La luz de la fe les impulsará a responder al mal con el bien y la
santidad de vida, como lo hicieron los grandes testigos del Evangelio a
lo largo de los siglos. Ustedes están llamados a continuar esa cadena de
amigos de Jesús, que encontraron en su amor el gran tesoro de sus vidas.
Cultiven esta amistad a través de la oración, tanto personal como
litúrgica, y por medio de las obras de caridad y del compromiso por
ayudar a los más necesitados. Si no lo han hecho, plantéense seriamente
si el Señor les pide seguirlo de un modo radical en el ministerio
sacerdotal o en la vida consagrada. No basta una relación esporádica con
Cristo. Una amistad así no es tal. Cristo les quiere amigos suyos
íntimos, fieles y perseverantes.

A la vez que les renuevo mi invitación a participar en la Jornada
Mundial de la Juventud en Sidney, les aseguro mi recuerdo en la oración,
en la que suplico a Dios que los haga auténticos discípulos de Cristo
Resucitado. Muchas gracias.

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