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| Pope Francis celebrates Mass at the Pontifical North American College in Rome May 2. It was the first papal visit to the U.S. seminary since 1980. (CNS photo/Paul Haring) |
ROME, Italy — Seminarians studying in the city of Rome have the special grace of being in close proximity to the Holy Father.
This closeness is manifested not only in the spiritual sense of being under the guidance and care of the shepherd of the whole universal Church, but in a particular way by being present with His Holiness during Wednesday audiences, Sunday Angelus addresses, and various liturgical celebrations throughout the year.
Pope celebrates Holy Mass
The seminarians and priests of the Pontifical North American College, on Saturday, May 2, had the particular honor of welcoming the Holy Father into our home to celebrate the Holy Mass in our community chapel.
His Holiness Pope Francis celebrated Mass with the seminary community as the culmination of a morning of reflection on the life of Blessed Junipero Serra, in anticipation of his visit to the United States in September during which Serra, called “The Apostle of California,” will be canonized.
The morning was marked by four different presentations on the life of Blessed Junipero Serra: his work of evangelization of the native peoples of the American west, his relationship with Our Lady of Guadalupe, the importance of his life in establishing the Catholic roots of California and beyond, and reflections on various elements of his missionary zeal that can aid us in our current efforts of evangelization, particularly for those of Latin-American roots.
In his homily, His Holiness Pope Francis discussed three key aspects of the life of Blessed Junipero Serra: his missionary zeal, his Marian devotion, and his witness of holiness.
The Holy Father described Blessed Junipero Serra as a “tireless missionary,” who left his homeland driven by “the desire to proclaim the Gospel ad gentes, that heartfelt impulse which seeks to share with those farthest away the gift of encountering Christ.”
Furthermore, the Holy Father challenged us to imitate this missionary zeal, asking, “I wonder if today we are able to respond with the same generosity and courage to the call of God?”
Finally, the Holy Father invoked the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Blessed Junipero Serra, and all American saints to guide him during his upcoming apostolic journeys to both South and North America, praying that “a powerful gust of holiness may sweep through all the Americas.”
Historic day
This historic day marked the first time in 35 years that the Roman pontiff had visited the Pontifical North American College, the last papal visit taking place during the pontificate of St. John Paul II in February 1980.
While it is always moving and grace-filled to be in the presence of and to pray with the successor of St. Peter and Vicar of Christ on earth, to welcome him into our very home was particularly profound.
It was a beautiful experience to be present as the Holy Father celebrated the Holy Mass in the chapel in which we pray and celebrate Mass each day as a community.
There was a palpable sense of love and prayer that emanated from Pope Francis, as that of a father who had come to visit us, his sons, to encourage and inspire us to greater holiness and missionary zeal.
Close proximity
Throughout the visit of His Holiness, I had the particular assignment of being a photographer for the event.
From the moment of his arrival at the college to his departure and return to the Vatican, I was able to stand in close proximity to the Holy Father, attempting to capture in photographs the sense of importance of this historic event.
As he walked the main corridor from the entrance to the sacristy to prepare for Mass, Pope Francis took particular pleasure in pausing to view the photo displays hanging on the wall from previous papal visits to the North American College.
He smiled when he saw photos of the young St. John Paul II during his visit to the college, commenting on how strong and energetic he appeared.
The Holy Father then laughed as he realized he was looking at a photo of St. John Paul II looking at a photo of Blessed Paul VI during their respective visits as pope to the North American College, a clear manifestation of the constant guidance and witness of sanctity that the Roman pontiff provides for the Church.
It was especially moving for me to be present as the Holy Father began to prepare for the celebration of Mass.
The moment he began to vest for the liturgy, his demeanor ostensibly changed.
He appeared to purposefully set aside the exuberant charisma that has made him so beloved among the people of the Church and the world, and took up a profound state of prayer as he turned his focus to the celebration of the Eucharist and mysteries of the passion, death, and resurrection of the Savior.
His spirit of prayer helped all of us of the seminary community, despite the excitement of the event, to enter deeply into this moment of prayer and encounter with the Risen Christ.
Billed as the symbolic beginning to his apostolic visit to the United States, the day was filled with many graces, particularly as we prayed with the Holy Father that a “gust of holiness” would spread over the people of the United States during his visit to our beloved homeland.
Bill Van Wagner is a seminarian of the Diocese of Madison and a second year theology student at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.