Opus Dei

Benedict XVI expresses his gratitude and affection just before boarding the plane that will take him back to Rome.

In his final Mass in the U.S., celebrated at Yankee Stadium in New York on the afternoon of Sunday, April 20th, the Pope spoke about obedience and authority as well as the need to have our Christian faith permeate every aspect of one's life, including participation in public life.

Here is the prayer of Benedict XVI when he visited Ground Zero in New York on the morning of Sunday, April 20th. "Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred," he prayed.

At St. Joseph's Parish in New York, the Pope met with representatives from various Christian denominations for a brief ecumenical prayer service. He asked everyone present to pray for "the 'oneness of hope, oneness of faith, and oneness of love' that alone will convince the world that Jesus Christ is the one sent by the Father for the salvation of all."

The Holy Father's homily on Saturday morning in St. Patrick's Cathedral was a hope-filled call for a "deeper faith in God’s infinite power to transform every human situation." The Pope said: "Let us ask the Spirit to enable us each day to grow in the holiness that will make us living stones in the temple which he is even now raising up in the midst of our world."

On Saturday April 19th, the Holy Father told the seminarians and young people gathered at St. Joseph's Seminary to fight against the temptation "to close in on ourselves, to doubt the strength of Christ's radiance, to limit the horizon of hope. Take courage! Fix your gaze on our saints."

On Friday afternoon in the Park East Synagogue, Benedict XVI expressed his esteem for the Jewish people and said how moved he was to recall "that Jesus, as a young boy, heard the words of Scripture and prayed in a place such as this."

At The Catholic University of America on Thursday, April 17, the Holy Father challenged educators to confront "moral confusion and fragmentation of knowledge" with the "noble goals of scholarship and education, founded on the unity of truth."

Benedict XVI stresses the common values shared by Christians and Jews, and says that both are "prisoners of hope" (Zachariah 9:12), sharing the hope of the final redemption of all mankind.

Addressing the General Assembly on Friday morning, Benedict XVI said that "the Church is committed to contributing her experience 'of humanity,' developed over the centuries among peoples of every race and culture, and placing it at the disposal of all members of the international community."