By Mark J. Bonamo
Hackensack Chronicle
April 23, 2008
http://www.hackensackchronicle.com/NC/0/186.html
When Daniel Aguiar, a fourth grader at Hackensack's Holy Trinity School, caught his first sight of Pope Benedict XVI as he rode in the Popemobile down New York's Fifth Avenue last week, the spectacle made a strong impression on him.
"I felt happy. He's the leader of the whole entire Catholic Church," said Aguiar, 10, who lives in Lodi with his Costa Rican-born mother and Ecuadorian-born father. "It was a one-time experience, and he gave me his blessing. I actually was really close to him."
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| Holy Trinity School students Daniel Aguiar, Ellen Marte and Paul Scully (left to right) had positive reactions to the recent visit of Pope Benedict XVI, the spiritual leader of the worlds 1.1 billion Roman Catholics. Photo by Mark J. Bonamo |
The first visit of Pope Benedict to the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area last week gave Hackensack's Roman Catholics an opportunity to get close to their spiritual leader. The pope's trip also gave area Catholics an opportunity to examine what it means to follow their faith in the context of a changing and challenged church.
Bergen-based bishop on Benedict XVI
Aguiar is not the only Bergen County resident to get close to the pope. The Most Reverend John Flesey is an auxiliary bishop in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, serving as the regional bishop for Bergen County since 2004. As part of the ecclesiastical entourage surrounding the pope, Flesey was nearer to the pope than most.
"As a bishop, I was invited to participate in all of the major local events with the pope a little more closely," said Flesey, 65, who is also the pastor of Most Blessed Sacrament Church in Franklin Lakes. "It was a tumultuous welcome, as great as any one that his predecessor Pope John Paul II had before him."
"The present pope has more of a scholarly demeanor, while John Paul II had a more outgoing nature," continued Flesey, who also met the Polish-born pope, who died in 2005. The German-born Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger succeeded him shortly thereafter, taking the name Benedict XVI. "But because of that, you could tell that when the pope was reacting positively to the people, he was really thrilled. The crowd seemed to react equally well to him."
Many American Catholics also responded positively to comments the pope made at the beginning of his trip to the United States on the sex abuse scandal involving members of the priesthood and their parishioners that erupted in 2002.
"No words of mine could describe the pain and harm inflicted by such abuse," said the pope during his homily at an April 17 open-air mass in Washington, D.C. "It is important that those who have suffered be given loving pastoral attention."
The pope met with several victims of sexual abuse by priests from the Boston area on the same day.
The pope's comments and actions were firmly seconded by Flesey.
"Nothing he could ever say or do can undo the past," he said. "All he can do is address it by saying that we are aware of the damage it caused and do everything possible to prevent a recurrence of such events. It think people felt a great deal of trust in him because he dealt so directly with the issue right in the beginning."
The pope spoke directly about many issues during his trip, including immigration, human rights and Catholic unity. Seen by many as a doctrinal conservative, the pope also spoke on April 20 at Yankee Stadium about his belief that American Catholics need to accept "authority" and work toward greater "obedience" of faith. The pope admitted that these words might represent a "stumbling stone especially in a society which rightly places a high value on personal freedom."
For Flesey, the pope's words represent ideas that have less to do with adherence to a set of rules, but respect for a higher authority.
"The obedience he was taking about was the obedience of faith," he said. "It's the obedience that comes to listening to the word of God in prayer, not simply obedience to an authority about rules and regulations. It's the deep-seated encounter between God and I in my heart that challenges me in my thoughts, my behavior and my actions."
A view from the pew
Hackensack resident Hugh McKenna had just finished his morning spiritual encounter as he recently stood outside Holy Trinity Church in Hackensack following the daily 8 a.m. Mass. For McKenna, 70, a retired banker, the pope had done a good job during his trip regarding some of the challenges facing the American Catholic Church.
"He brought out a lot of good points," he said. "He told the bishops that he wants to keep Catholic schools going and the churches kept open, even though it has been a very difficult time lately to do these things. This way, the continuity of the church continues."
McKenna believes that the American church hierarchy should encourage more business people to get involved to help run the church.
"You see more lay people involved in every aspect of the church," he said. "Growing up, you didn't see the lay people so involved. Now you do."
While McKenna was pleased with the way the pope dealt with the lingering effects of the sexual abuse scandal as well as other issues, he also believes that the church is facing a period of change as the institution continues.
"The church will evolve, and it's going to be better," he said. "For example, there never were any married deacons when I was younger. They do a tremendous amount of great work within the church today. We have to rely upon the Holy Spirit to advise the pope and the bishops about what direction the church will take. It's going to take a while, but the Holy Spirit will speak to them. Things will work out for us, because God wants them to work out for us."
At Holy Trinity School, being Catholic is 'cool'
Across the street at Holy Trinity School, Vanessa Welch, mother of first grade student Justice Welch, explained why she felt that despite the challenges and changes being dealt with by the church, she felt that a Catholic education was the best choice for her son.
"I grew up in Catholic education, so I chose the same for my son," said Welch, 33, a Hackensack resident, noting that she also liked the smaller class sizes available at Holy Trinity. "I think that this pope does care about the younger community. He's trying to get kids involved. A prime example is the pope going to Yankee Stadium. It's one of the biggest venues around, but it's also a place kids think about because of baseball. The church has to keep reaching out to the children."
If children are the future of the American Catholic Church, then the reactions of some Holy Trinity students offer some hope. According to school officials, 39 languages are spoken by the students of the pre-kindergarten through eighth grade school, a reflection of both the diversity of Hackensack and the surrounding communities, as well as the Catholic Church as a whole.
Sixth grader Paul Scully is the son of an Irish immigrant mother. Scully, 12, and his family had the luck of the Irish on their side when they won the Holy Trinity parish raffle for seats to see Pope Benedict at Yankee Stadium.
"We had second row seats in the upper deck," he said. "I felt really blessed and honored to see the pope. In his homily, he talked about that in order to get real happiness, you have to serve others and help people. I believe that's true."
Ellen Marte, a sixth grader whose parents come from the Dominican Republic, watched the pope on television in her Hackensack home. Even though she didn't see him in person, Marte, 11, liked what she saw.
"It was really nice that he had his birthday here," she said, a reference to the pope's April 16 birthday. "I saw that people were waiting for hours for him to come. I felt really happy to see him. Once my teacher gave me a picture of him. It was even better to see him on TV and know that he was around."
For Scully, he wasn't just watching the Pope in person. He was looking for leadership.
"He's the most important person in the Catholic Church, maybe the world," he said. "He's the one who gives us the best example of how to do good things. I'll remember seeing him for the rest of my life."
E-mail: bonamo@northjersey.com
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