“First. Love ought to manifest itself more by deeds than by words. Second. Love consists in a mutual communication between the two persons. That is, the one who loves gives and communicates to the beloved what he or she has…I will consider how God dwells in creatures; in the elements, giving them existence: in the plants, giving them life; in the animals, giving them sensation; in human beings, giving them intelligence; and finally how in this way he dwells also in myself, giving me existence, life, sensation and intelligence…I will consider how God labors and works for me in all the creatures on the face of the earth; that is, he acts in the manner of one who is laboring. For example, he is working in the heavens, elements, plants, fruits, cattle, and all the rest—giving them their existence, conserving them, concurring with their vegetative and sensitive activities, and so forth. Then I will reflect on myself.”
Contemplation to Attain Love of Jesuit Recruits, as cited by Chris Lowney, Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-year-old Company [Jesuits] that Changed the World, 2003.
Pope Francis generates so much enthusiasm from people, wherever he goes, as he embodies love, humility, wisdom and uncommon warmth, thawing out chills of hostility. It is as if his presence in the United States, on Sept. 22-26, electrified the crowds, as his tweets have gone viral, and on Facebook, became trending news.
Prior to his historic visit to the US, the Holy Father hosted both the Cuban and the US delegations to broker the peace talks between the two countries. The long-standing conflict has now turned into a new chapter of peace-building, with embassies opening up in both Cuba and the United States.
Arrival ceremonies at the White House’s South Lawn
I got to 17th and Pennsylvania at 3:40 am on Wednesday, Sept. 23 and already, Reuters, Fox, Associated Press and Korean Television were in line. Network television crews and morning talk shows were allowed to set up before 5 am, and security checks for hundreds of journalists took two hours for all of us to get press cards and our camera equipment checked.
11,000 ticketed guests had gathered at 9:15 am. By now, the sun had tempered the chill, making for a beautiful morning, with blue skies and mild temperatures.
The Program started with Ruffles and Flourishes and Hail to the Chief. The President and Mrs. Obama greeted His Holiness Pope Francis, followed by introductions to the official welcoming committee. The National Anthems of the Holy See and the United States followed, with Musical Troop in Review.
Loud cheers erupted when the Holy Father arrived.
President Barack Obama welcomed the Holy Father. He jokingly referred to the White House’s backyard as not being typically this crowded. He underscored the gathering as reflective of “the size and spirit of today’s gathering and the deep devotion of some 70 million American Catholics. It reflects, as well, the way that your message of love and hope has inspired so many people across our nation and around the world.”
The president spoke of the Pope’s unique qualities as a person, “In your humility, your embrace of simplicity, in the gentleness of your words and the generosity of your spirit, we see a living example of Jesus’ teachings, a leader whose moral authority comes not just through words but also through deeds.”
He spoke of “the Lord’s most powerful message is mercy. And that means welcoming the stranger with empathy and a truly open heart—from the refugee who flees war-torn lands to the immigrant who leaves home in search of a better life. It means showing compassion and love for the marginalized and the outcast, to those who have suffered, and those who have caused suffering and seek redemption. You remind us of the costs of war, particularly on the powerless and defenseless, and urge us toward the imperative of peace.” These drew loud applauses.
The president spoke of the Vatican’s role in thawing out the chill in US-Cuba relations as well as the need to take care of our common home. “And, Holy Father, you remind us that we have a sacred obligation to protect our planet, God’s magnificent gift to us. We support your call to all world leaders to support the communities most vulnerable to changing climate, and to come together to preserve our precious world for future generations. Your Holiness, in your words and deeds, you set a profound moral example,” he said.
The White House, during a conference call with the open press, in preparation for the visit of the Pope, recognized common values shared with the Vatican on climate change.
The president remarked, “Here at home and around the world, may our generation heed your call to never remain on the sidelines of this march of living hope. For that great gift of hope, Holy Father, we thank you, and welcome you, with joy and gratitude, to the United States of America.”
Pope Francis’ remarks centered on dialogue, of tolerance, of being inclusive“Mr. President, I am deeply grateful for your welcome in the name of the all Americans. As a son of an immigrant family, I am happy to be a guest in this country, which was largely built by such families.
I look forward to these days of encounter and dialogue in which I hope to listen to and share many of the hopes and dreams of the American people.”
The Pope addressed the Joint Session of Congress and Senate on Thursday, Sept. 24 and traveled to Philadelphia for the eighth World Meeting of Families over the weekend “to celebrate and support the institutions of marriage and the family at this critical moment in the history of our civilization,” he said.
“Mr. President, together with their fellow citizens, 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.”
The Pope reminded us all that cherished freedoms are America’s most precious possessions, and “to preserve and defend that freedom from everything that would threaten or compromise it.”
On climate change, the Pope found it “encouraging that you are proposing an initiative for reducing air pollution. Accepting the urgency, it seems clear to me also that climate change is a problem, which can no longer be left to our future generation. When it comes to the care of our common home, we are living at a critical moment of history. We still have time to make the change needed to bring about a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change. Such change demands on our part a serious and responsible recognition not only of the kind of world we may be leaving to our children, but also to the millions of people living under a system which has overlooked them. Our common home has been part of this group of the excluded, which cries out to heaven and which today powerfully strikes our homes, our cities, our societies. To use a telling phrase of the Reverend Martin Luther King, we can say that we have defaulted on a promissory note, and now is the time to honor it.”
These imperative statements drew the loudest applauses.
St. Augustine Catholic Church’s Choir of Washington, D.C, sang “Total Praise” after the remarks and energized the crowds.
Moments later, the Pope appeared on the balcony with President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
Crowds gathered included Los Angeles Bishop Robert Barron, who told a group of reporters, that he was a guest of NBC’s “Today” show. Maria Shriver interviewed Robert Barron on what might be expected from the Pope, “He’ll speak of Jesus Christ, but also of basic human values that appeal across the denominational lines and to the secular world. He’s someone very at ease with that kind of communication.”
I spoke to Maria Peña, of La Opinion, about the Pope’s remarks, “It was short, poignant, did not emphasize immigration [although she thinks that will be addressed in the Joint Session of Congress and Senate] instead, emphasized climate change. It was good, all together. I like the finishing touch of someone yelling out, “We love you Pope Francis.” She also shared the story of Jersey Vargas, who gave a handkerchief of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Pope, and who at her tender age of 10 years old met with Pope Francis to save her father from deportation and to call on the president and Congress to act on immigration reform.
Shortly after 10 am, the crowds were dispersed, leaving behind empty plastic bottles, once with water to satisfy the biological thirst of these thousands gathered.
For this writer, this momentous occasion was a satisfaction of her spiritual thirst, a wish to see Pope Francis in person, as a personification of a moral authority whose actions are aligned with his beliefs. But also, Pres. Obama and their appearances onstage made for a sacred moment, given their shared common values on big ticket item issues: climate change, poverty, refugees and “the conviction that all members of the human family have equal value and infinite worth and should have the opportunity to realize safe and productive futures for themselves; the belief that reconciliation can happen not only between people but also between nations; the conviction that we must secure the unalienable right of all people to practice their faith according to the dictates of conscience, standing against those who would target people for violence, persecution, or discrimination based on their religion; and the duty to manage the resources of the earth today in such a way that will allow our children and grandchildren to live their lives abundantly tomorrow.”
But also to represent the Asian Journal amongst these hundreds of journalists, as I covered these historic firsts of convergences at the White House. I felt a sense of pride, a feeling that I was once an immigrant, now an American citizen/journalist, getting access to walk on the soft grass of the verdant South Lawn, and to have a photo taken with hundreds of journalists, thousands of citizens, fellow Catholics and non-Catholics warmly welcoming the Holy Father in the United States. To be privileged in this manner with God’s grace to a lapsed Catholic of 25 years, is indeed God’s blessings in many ways! I got to talk to young folks who waited since 2:30 am. One is Duddh of Washington, DC, formerly of Philadelphia: “It is momentous, once in a lifetime that we are not going to pass up.”
Another is Maria, from West Virginia, who was “feeling great, excited and has been waiting since dawn.”
Brandon, who came from New York, found the Pope “inspirational, a leader, like no other, who will work on issues that matter to humanity” and even though he was lined up since 2:30 am, “it was worth every second.”
