Papal Trip Reactions

Dear Editor: As I sat watching the various events surrounding Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Washington D.C. and New York City, I was very spiritually moved. Everywhere he went, the pope was welcomed wildly by thousands of people, Catholic and non-Catholic alike. It was very moving to see him meet with the rabbi at the synagogue in Manhattan. Both of them were very sincere in their remarks to each other; both were deeply affected by the Nazi regime, the pope being forced to be in the Hitler youth movement, the rabbi, a Holocaust survivor. It was so wonderful to see these two men of religious faith shaking hands and embracing.

Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and other faiths should all take a lesson from this — we can get along  and work with each other, and also respect each other’s religion and religious beliefs.

Thank you, Holy Father, for coming to our great nation — a nation that all Americans of all faiths are proud to be a part of.

Also, the visit to ground zero was one that brought tears to my eyes, watching the pope personally greet each of the 24 people who in some way had been so deeply affected by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Again, thank you, Your Holiness, for your very comforting words that you said when you visited the World Trade Center site. May God bless you with many more years as our holy shepherd.

John Amato
Fresh Meadows

Dear Editor:  As an average Catholic, humble but proud, I was completely overwhelmed by the fantastic, organized, if I may call it spectacular, display and arrangements in Yankee Stadium. The beautiful altar and dazzling field layout - ‘awesome’ is the word.

May I please congratulate the Archdiocese of New York, and the Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens, the bishops, priests, deacons, thousands of volunteers, also, all departments of security, for a magnificent, outstanding, dedicated job that sets an example to the whole world.

My wife and I unfortunately did not win a lottery ticket but our daughter Maureen did and came home from Yankee Stadium mesmerized, on “cloud nine.”

The outstanding features of the day that stand out in my mind as I watched it on TV were: the penetrating spirituality, warmth, and closeness to Jesus Christ one felt all through the Holy Mass. Also, the eyes of His Holiness, Pope Benedict, as he reached out to every person. And the sanctity, stillness, and respect that permeated the stadium during the Mass; the 300 priests giving out Holy Communion; the hundreds of nuns present.

There was not a single incident of disruption of any kind recorded. The Mass was carried on so many TV stations. The happy, uplifting faces of 57,000 New Yorkers and their friends, from every ethnic group, was a sight to behold.

Tommy Lydon
Flushing

Dear Editor:     I just wanted to say that our Holy Father’s visit was something that will never be forgotten. When he stepped off the plane and held up his hands it was like he was embracing all of us. I hope this will bring peace and love to everyone and that we all can live as brothers and sisters in Christ.

Janie Jurica
Maspeth

Dear Editor: I was lucky enough to see the pope from the steps of St. Patrick’s Cathedral on his visit to New York, and to hear the Mass, since they set up loudspeakers for us. Besides the thrill of seeing His Holiness, it was inspiring to see different nationalities reciting the prayers and responses of the Mass even though we were outside the cathedral.

During his visit we were all united, and he brought us hope. We can only pray this feeling will last longer than the memories of his visit.

Many thanks to the Secret Service, the NYC Police Dept. and other organizations for protecting him and being courteous and helpful to those of us waiting. People were there from 6 a.m. until his popemobile passed us on Fifth Ave. in the early afternoon.

Mary Ann De Luca
Gravesend

Dear Editor: One of the hopes that Pope Benedict’s visit to the U.S. focuses on is that it will inspire more vocations to the priesthood and religious life. 

I am sure that the recent opening of the Pope John Paul II House of Discernment was no unrelated effort.  

Statistics paint a bleak picture in this matter but statistics are drawn from the past and cannot take into account hope, prayer and the effects of the infusion of grace.

As an example of awareness and gratitude for the service of priests, the parish of Holy Child Jesus in Richmond Hill is celebrating 35 years of ordination to the priesthood of parochial vicar, Father Thomas M. Catania.  Perhaps this public affirmation will bring some to consider priesthood as an essential life’s choice. 
Orate fratres.

Kay Carpenter
Richmond Hill 

 
Dear Editor: I think the pope’s visit to America was the best trip I ever went on. New York’s Mass at Yankee Stadium with Our Holy Father was phenomenal. The peace was amazing. The music, the energy of the crowds, and especially the homily of His Holiness left an imprint on my mind.

Cardinal Edward Egan inspired me when he addressed Pope Benedict as Vicar of Christ. It reminded us what Pope Benedict came to do; to bring Jesus Christ to the people and to give us hope in his saving redemption.

Outside Yankee Stadium where the crowds were lined up ready to go to Sunday Mass with our pope, chants of “Christ Our Hope” went up. Crowds of faithful remained respectful and solemn throughout the Mass in acknowledgement of its solemnity. There was an aura of holiness as the Holy Father invited men to become priests acknowledging how Jesus Christ gave all of humanity hope by dying for His friends. It was nice to hear people say “Christ Our Hope.” It summarized what He came to the United States to do — to bring hope to all of God’s children by bringing them Christ.

The pope explained how Jesus Christ is Our Hope. He is the best he can be and he inspired a nation and the world by visiting ground zero and saying a prayer for the victims and the perpetrators of the attack. God Bless America. He blessed me through the pope. I will always love our priests, our heroes. They show us the path to Jesus who is our savior and redeemer.

Michael Lucci
Brooklyn

Father Fox Still Remembered 

Dear Editor: April 15 is the second anniversary of the passing of Father Thomas E. Fox, a loving and most caring priest who made people feel good about themselves and their faith. He worked long hours, often alone, as the pastor of Holy Family Church in Brooklyn, but he always had a smile and time for anyone and everyone.

When my daughter had a life-threatening sickness, he left his much needed vacation, driving several hours to return to Brooklyn to pray at her bedside while holding her hand.

When he became ill he never complained and continued to work unselfishly. He was a true servant of his Lord and a shining example of a devoted Catholic priest. He is deeply missed and may he peacefully rest forever in his Savior’s loving arms.

Tony Mignone
Staten Island

A Question About Scanlan

Dear Editor: I very much enjoyed Patrick McNamara’s excellent in-depth piece on Tablet Managing Editor Patrick Scanlan, but, inevitably, there is more to be said. One point is whether Scanlan was anti-Semitic.

In his book, “Neighbors in Conflict: The Irish, Germans, Jews, and Italians of New York City, 1929-1941,” historian Ronald H. Bayor recounts how Scanlan supported the radio preacher Father Charles Coughlin when his anti-Semitism emerged very clearly in 1938. Coughlin had begun to publish the anti-Semitic slander known as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. After the Nazis’ Kristallnacht attack on Jews all over Germany on November 20, 1938, Coughlin went on WMCA Radio to defend the violence as a response to Communism. Bayor wrote that in the controversy following Coughlin’s remarks, Scanlan defended Coughlin by claiming that a high proportion of Communists were Jewish. The Tablet also carried an article and letters favorable to Coughlin.

The Tablet’s anniversary offers a chance to reflect on these aspects of the Catholic experience in New York.

Paul Moses
Marine Park

100 Years of Tablet Memories

Dear Editor: When I received the April 19 copy of The Tablet in the mail, I was delighted to read your extensive coverage of the visit of Pope Benedict XVI.
My family has subscribed to The Tablet since the first issue in 1908. I was born in 1914.

I remember The Tablet Honor Roll when I attended St. Gregory the Great School on St. John’s Pl. in Brooklyn. I recently came across a ruler that The Tablet gave each student who made the Honor Roll.

I could go on forever concerning my memories of The Tablet which has done such a great job over the years by keeping us informed of all the latest diocesan and worldwide religious news.

May God bless your next 100 years!

Marcella R. O’Rourke
Bay Ridge