Mepkin novices attend papal mass in Washington, DC
Earlier this year a letter was sent to all the religious superiors of the United States to invite them and each of the novices in the United States to attend the mass of the canonization of Junipero Serra to be celebrated by Pope Francis at the Basilica National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC. Abbot Stan had to decline but gave his permission for our novices to participate. And so our Brother Juan and Brother Martin, accompanied by Brother John and Father Kevin travelled up to Washington by car the day before and received wonderful hospitality from Father Brian Shloth at the LaSalette community at their house of studies near the Catholic University of America. The mass was to be celebrated at 4 PM. Early the morning of the mass the Mepkin contingent joined the long lines waiting to pass through the security stations with metal detectors and went to their designated places for the mass. The novices and Brother John were with the huge number of novices inside the basilica. Father Kevin was outside in the area reserved for the priests who were concelebrating. There was a wonderful spirit of unity in faith and a prevailing sense of cordiality as the hours passed waiting for the Holy Father to arrive. As everyone knows, upon arrival the pope passed through the crowd outdoors in the ‘popemobile’ receiving a joyous welcome from all in attendance. As had been planned, Pope Francis entered the basilica, visited the Blessed Sacrament chapel for a brief time of prayer, and then slowly walked up the center aisle of the basilica waving to the novices who were welcoming him with loud and hearty cheering. (For all of us gathered outside we knew the Holy Father was with the novices as the loud cheering erupted, spilling out to where we were listening to the wonderful music provided by combined choirs and an excellent orchestra). When he reached the sanctuary, Pope Francis turned and offered prepared remarks to the novices and gave them his blessing.
The liturgy was marked with a reverent prayerfulness and great joy. Pope Francis’ homily (in his native Spanish) was very moving, acknowledging the great missionary efforts made by Father Junipero to bring the gospel and the faith to those who had not yet been catechized. With pastoral sensitivity he drew attention to the point many have made, that missionary methods of that period and today are different and he spoke of the suffering experienced by some as change came to that region with the missionaries bringing the gospel.
All of us found the experience enriching in so many ways. Certainly one’s sense of the church is expanded through participating in such an occasion and one’s faith is renewed in seeing so many men and women responding to the call to religious life. Their evident yearning for God and their desire to encourage others to live an even deeper commitment to Christ leave a deep impression.
Leaving Washington, DC at 4 AM the day after the mass the travelers arrived home in mid afternoon grateful to have joined with the Holy Father in prayer, grateful to be with so many others for his historic visit, appreciative of the Pope Francis’s desire to encourage Catholics of our country in their faith, appreciative of his pastoral manner in offering teaching, thankful for his example of outreach to the poor and marginalized and thankful for the way he embraced all in a spirit of love and with a clear commitment to foster dialogue and build bridges. For us living the contemplative monastic life, this brief venture outside the monastery reinforced our understanding of our call to be ceaselessly at prayer for the church, for all humanity, for the young emerging to take roles of responsibility in the church and for the many who are growing into a fuller appreciation of the meaning of their baptism.