Archive for August, 1993
Columbia Teenagers Share Same Excitement About Pope
Thursday, August 19th, 1993
“The Catholic Miscellany”
By Kathleen S. Heberger
COLUMBIA – Jeff Kirby is trying to organize the altar servers at his church, and Elizabeth Frederick is still trying to figure out when to sit down and when to stand during Mass.
But both teen-agers are excited about seeing the pope in Denver.
Kirby and Frederick are among hundreds of South Carolina youths who will be heading to Colorado Aug. 10-16 with a group from the diocese. Pope John Paul II will visit Denver as a part of World Youth Day, a gathering of about 200,000 primarily Catholic youths from around the world.
The week in Denver promises to be one of discovery – of religious belief, of new friends, of new cultures and of self. Kirby and Frederick, though they have yet to meet, share some of the same hopes for the trip.
JEFF KIRBY
Jeff Kirby, 18 and a member of St. Joseph’s Church in Columbia, said he thanks his lucky stars, and his pastor, Monsignor Charles Rowland and members of his church, that he can attend World Youth Day and see the pope this year.
He is one of three youths from St. Joseph’s Church in Columbia who will attend the event, expenses-paid in full, because of winning a church essay contest. “I wouldn’t be making a pilgrimage to Denver if it wasn’t for Monsignor Rowland and the church of St. Joseph’s,” Kirby said.
Nicknamed “The Bish,” “Little Bishop” and “Reverend Father” by his peers, Kirby has a reputation for being ardent in his service, knowledge and faith in the Catholic church. He is one of the oldest altar servers at St. Joseph’s, a member of the church’s youth group, youth Bible study group and pro-life choir. An Eagle scout, he also works with a Boy Scout troop that meets at St. Joseph’s.
“Life interests me – I’m open to anything, really,” Kirby said. “I’m lucky that the church means so much to me. I could have become a fanatic about the other things you can get sucked into. I’m lucky I got caught up in Jesus Christ.”
Kirby has lived the life of the youngest son in an Army family. He remembers seeing the pope while his father was stationed in Germany. Kirby was about eight-years-old at the time.
“That has a profound effect on anybody,” he said.
He said this past experience of seeing the Holy Father, plus the prospect of meeting people from China, Russia, Mexico and Ireland, gives the Denver trip even more significance. He said he’s been brushing up on his Spanish and will make a point to meet youths from far away countries.
“It will be a visible presence of the church,” he said. “It’s going to be a blast.”
A rising senior at Lower Richland High School, Kirby’s plans for the future are not set in stone yet. He dreamed as a child of becoming the U.S. ambassador to Great Britain, and now he is considering attending a Catholic seminary.
“I’m opening myself up to God,” he said. “I want to do whatever He wants me to do. He is in charge.”
Kirby says he admires and tries to emulate Bishop Thompson’s devotion to the stances of the Catholic Church. Kirby also tries to believe and defend the church’s positions, even when they make him unpopular with the people around him.
“Sometimes it’s easy; sometimes it’s not,” he said. “The bishop said once, ‘I am whatever the church is,’ and I like that.”
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Determined Carolinian Meets Pope
Thursday, August 19th, 1993
“The Catholic Miscellany”
By Liz McCafferty
DENVER – His determination was exemplified in the World Youth Day opening ceremony.
While the rest of the South Carolina group was caught in the International bottleneck of thousands, trying to catch a glimpse of the opening Mass and being turned away because of the crowds, eighteen year old Jeff Kirby managed to work his way through to witness the pageantry.
A playful spirit, he had earlier teased some gullible girls from Myrtle Beach that the pope would be skiing while in Denver and had initiated crank calls to comrades from the Diocese of Charleston who were staying at the same hotel – only after he called the hotel desk to make sure his prank could not be traced.
Jeff is a natural leader with an enthusiasm for life and his faith. To have the chance to meet with 200,000 young Catholics and the Holy Father was like a dream to him. As the months of preparation and expectation were building, Jeff said he had some anxiety that something might go wrong.
So when Father Francis Travis, Vicar for Youth for the Diocese of Charleston called a week before the Columbia youth was to fly to Denver for World Youth Day, Jeff was worried.
“I remember, Father Travis said, ‘Your name came up,’ and I thought ‘oh, no, I’m not going,’ but he asked if I could help out and perform a service, to greet the pope at the airport. I couldn’t believe it!”
Father Travis said that Jeff was chosen to represent the youth of the diocese because of his active participation in youth leadership activities in diocese, deanery and parish levels.
What was it like?
The bus Jeff was riding was the first to arrive at Stapleton International Airport. Sensing that time was of the essence, he breezed through security, sprinted up to an area where chairs had been placed in front of the podium and claimed one in the front row.
He waited with 200 young representatives from U.S. dioceses for three hours in afternoon heat on tarmac. They entertained themselves with songs and chants.
Finally the planes arrived. First President and Mrs. Clinton, with daughter Chelsea, then the Holy Father.
As the president began his address, the rains began to fall. The dignitaries were under cover of an umbrella, but the young people were getting soaked.
“When the pope spoke,” Jeff said, “Everyone was intent on what he was saying. He talked about the Gospel challenge, and respecting life.”
After speaking, pope and president were directed to an area where a chosen group of representatives were to greet the pontiff; a group which did not include Jeff.
It was the enthusiastic chants of “John Paul Two, we love you!” from the unchosen that got the pope’s attention. He was moved to break plan and he extended his blessings and shook the hands of the well-wishers.
How did it feel to take the pope’s hand and kiss it?
“My eyes were watering, it was it was a wonderful spiritual moment.” Jeff recalled. “For me, for people my age, for anybody, it’s hard to believe in God, so we look for God in our lives. John Paul II is a visible presence of God. I’m not saying he is God, but when you meet him you receive a confirmation that there is a God.
“His hands were rough, like a working man’s hands. I think that says something.”
Preparing for this trip, Jeff read three biographies on the Holy Father. He learned that the mother of this native of Wadowice, Poland died in childbirth when the pontiff was nine years old. And that from an early age, he adopted the Virgin Mary as his mother. He worked in Poland’s stone quarries under the Nazis and had to study secretly for the priesthood.
Jeff said the stories brought on an added dimension to the privilege of meeting Pope John Paul II.
“The office of the pope is holy and good, but this man, is also holy and good. You can respect Karol Joseph Wojtyla because of who he is and what he’s gone through. We are lucky to have this man so worthy of the office that deserves that respect. That’s why I love that name Holy Father; it shows an intimacy we share as the whole family of Catholics.”
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