Archive for May, 2004
BE Students Found Faith in Rome During Spring Break
Thursday, May 13th, 2004
“The Catholic Miscellany”
By Jeff Kirby
ROME-They didn’t know what to expect, but they still came.
A band of students from Bishop England High School in Charleston came to Rome on their spring break for a spiritually focused vacation. The usual sites of the Coliseum, Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps were in their minds, along with the sites not usually important to young people, such as St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Mary Major, St. John Lateran and other churches in the city. What made these young people forgo the beaches of Florida or the leisure of some Mexican cities?
This year the Catholic Church celebrated the 19th World Youth Day. Pope John Paul II chose as the theme of these festivities “We wish to see Jesus” (John 12:21). In this theme, we see the desire and quest of Generation X, and specifically, we see the reason behind the Bishop England students’ trans-Atlantic search. Each of these young people, with different personalities and backgrounds, diverse gifts and resources, unique plans for university studies and career aspirations, came to the Eternal City of Rome to look for some answers, to seek out
confirmation of their beliefs and to explore the personal meaning of faith in their own lives and futures.
Pope John Paul II, in a recent address to young people, said, “Certainly the message that the cross communicates is not easy to understand in our time.” It was precisely this difficulty that the Bishop England seniors came to wrestle with as they visited the shrines and basilicas of the city, as they attended the Mass with the pope, went to confession, hiked up a large hill in Assisi to spend some time in old hermitages, and as they sat in St. Peter’s Piazza late into the night sharing with one another the lessons of faith, hope and love which they received and learned.
The pope would continue in his address, saying: “Jesus is the truth of the universe and of history, the meaning and the destiny of human existence, the foundation of all reality.”
“Saints, saints – there are saints everywhere,” one of the students said to his peers.
During this spring break-turned-pilgrimage, the young people saw the historical and relevant stories of men and women who lost their lives rather than abandon their faith – people who went against their cultures and societies when human dignity was not respected, and who sought to simply love and spread God’s love.
“It makes the faith real, it’s everywhere,” another student told the group.
And the pope this year would remind all young people, “If your faith is linked merely to fragments of tradition, fine sentiments or generic religious ideology, you will certainly not be able to withstand the impact of the environment around you. You must therefore seek to keep your Christian identity steadfast, and rooted in the communion of the church.”
They came not knowing what to expect, and yet all their expectations were fulfilled. The Bishop England students came and sought out something, and they found a divine Someone. These seniors from South Carolina met the world in Rome through other visitors in the city, and they also met the saints, their older brothers and sisters in the faith and representatives of heaven itself. As the students shared their thoughts with one another, they further discovered new areas of their own hearts and portions of their spirit not previously known. They left Rome with the sadness of a good friend, but as new men and women, strengthened in their own identities and ready to finish high school and begin a fresh chapter of life in college. With the insight they each received, it can be said that although they left Rome. Rome will never leave them.
Jeff Kirby, is a seminarian of the Diocese of Charleston, studying at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.
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Blessed Teresa of Calcutta’s Beatification Mass: A Valuable Lesson
Saturday, May 1st, 2004
“Columbia”
MAY 2004
PAGE 11
By: Jeffrey Kirby
Seminarians from the North American College in Rome were privileged to serve as honor guards during the distribution of Communion at the beatification Mass of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta last Oct. 19.
This was an exciting event for each of us. As the day neared, we made sure our cassocks were clean, with no loose buttons or threads. We secured our tickets to the Mass and located the spots where we would be helping with Communion.
Bookended by the papal anniversary on Oct. 16 and the consistory of cardinals on Oct. 21, the beatification Mass on World Mission Sunday was a moment none of us will soon forget.
The morning of the beatification we seminarians headed to St. Peter’s Basilica and checked in for our assignments. We each received a white umbrella, which are used during papal liturgies to designate where Communion will be offered. People were everywhere and soon filled St. Peter’s Square and beyond. News reports said that more than 300,000 people attended the celebration. Joyous anticipation filled the air.
The Mass began and the beatification decree was proclaimed. Next, the tapestry depicting the smiling, prayerful Mother Teresa of Calcutta was unveiled. The “Gloria” was chanted and Teresa became Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.
It wasn’t until holy Communion that I realized fully the truth of what was taking place. As my classmates and I stood at our Communion stations, we saw the multitudes whose special devotion to Mother Teresa had brought them to Rome.
They were from different countries and cultures. Some had dirty hands. Others were missing teeth. Many bore the marks of illness. All of them came to show their love and devotion to the nun who had loved and respected them through her service to the poorest of the poor.
These were Christ’s little ones, Mother Teresa’s little ones: the cancer patient with no hair, the elderly person struggling to make it through the crowd, the teenager with spiked hair… They all approached Christ in the Eucharist. They knew that in him their dignity as children of God was restored.
All of the practical details of our service at Mass were forgotten. All of the confusion and anxiety that went into our preparations for the big day had faded away. We were all focused on our Lord.
In those moments we returned to the important event that was occurring. We were being inspired by Mother Teresa’s life, her unconditional and selfless service to the poorest of the poor in humble imitation of our Lord.
My fellow seminarians and I learned a valuable lesson that morning. What we learned was Blessed Teresa’s capacity to see Christ in everyone and that he loves them unconditionally. This is Blessed Teresa’s message to the 21st century.
It’s a lesson that is too easily forgotten or ignored. But now, thanks to God, we have Blessed Teresa of Calcutta in heaven to remind us, to pray for us and to encourage us as we seek to apply the lessons of her saintly life to our own.
JEFFREY KIRBY is a seminarian for the Diocese of Charleston, S.C., currently studying at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. He is a member of Pope John XXIII Council 6250 in Charleston.
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