Pope Benedict XVI at mass at Yankee Stadium, New York, April 20, 2008.

It was only two weeks before Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass at Nationals Park in Washington, D. C., that the three priests at St. Mary Immaculate Parish in Plainfield were notified by the Joliet Diocese that they were to concelebrate the Mass with the Holy Father.

Very quickly indeed, my brother priests, Father Dennis Spies and Father Dan Hoehn, and I booked our flights and hotels. We also announced our upcoming journey to those attending parish Masses that weekend and, over the next 10 days, collected hundreds of petitions to be brought to the papal Mass.

Upon arriving at the stadium, Father Dennis Spies secured seats for us in the last row of the section for concelebrants. This was no accident—it meant that they were only 15 feet from the “popemobile” as it made its journey around the ballpark as the pope arrived for Mass.

Father Dan Hoehn reflected later, “When the Pope-mobile rolled into the stadium, it was truly a magical moment! The contrast between the hushed expectation of the crowd—followed by the spontaneous roar as we caught our first glimpse of him—was something that words cannot describe!”

The joy and contagious excitement that greeted the Holy Father at the Washington D. C. Mass was a feeling that appeared to grip the city itself. We experienced a warm reception wherever we went in the D. C. area: people were eager to know if we were going to see the pope and they expressed a deep joy that Pope Benedict had come to their city.

Bishop J. Peter Sartain in the entrance procession of bishops at the Papal Mass at Nationals Park, Washington, D. C., April 17, 2008.

The Mass itself was inspiring. The papal Mass was not a liturgical “show”. Rather, Pope Benedict was making a pastoral call on his American flock—and he had much to share with us. The Holy Father’s homily was a message that we can easily share with our parishioners: Christ is our hope and the hope of the world. Our task, as faithful Catholics, is to live in that hope and invite others to share the hope that is Christ. The pope spoke openly and directly about the wounds in the modern world as well as the wounds within the church. And his own pastoral touch and deep faith, making Christ so present to us, sought to bring hope and healing.

It was a deeply spiritual event. We were not only linked in person with the vicar of Christ, but also with Catholics from around the world. The sense of unity amid diversity was expressed by Father Hoehn, “I was struck by the great unity and beauty of the eucharistic celebration. With every one taking their proper place and filling their proper roles—the pope, the cardinals, the bishops, the priest, the deacons, the gathered faithful, (the guys selling the T shirts!)— I was reminded of a great symphony in which the beauty of the music depends upon the unity of the musicians—each one playing his or her proper part for the sake of the whole; for the sake of producing a single beautiful masterpiece. The unity of the body of Christ was clearly manifested in this great celebration of the universal Church!”

The joy and enthusiasm that greeted the Pope in the nation’s capital was even deeper and more widespread in New York. I traveled from Washington up to New York to join family members who had tickets for the papal Mass in Yankee Stadium. There “The House that Ruth built” became a house of God as nearly 60,000 people attended the solemn papal Mass in the famous baseball shrine. The New York media gave voice to the sentiments of New Yorkers in general who were overwhelmingly fans of Pope Benedict. Not only were they happy to host the Pope but they also listened to what he had to say and had hearts open to receive what he came to give them. For the four days I was in New York, people were continually asking me about the pope and interested to talk about his visit. Everyone seemed to be in a good mood…such was the impact of this humble, faithful, Bavarian worker in the vineyard of the Lord.

Pope Benedict ended his visit with a resounding prayer, “God, bless America!” The Lord has blessed us with Pope Benedict XVI as our Shepherd and Pastor. His visit was a blessing not only to me but to the hundreds of thousands of people who saw him and the millions of people who were touched by his words and deeds of faith, hope, love and truth.

— Father David Medow, pastor of St. Mary Immaculate Parish, Plainfield