Well, as we know, "all good things must come to an end", and so this wonderful pilgrimage has now been completed. And what a wonderful way to end it. As the saying goes, I think we "saved the best for last".
The day began bright and early with another gorgeous, pleasant, April/Spring day. Fr. Ted, Mike Emmons and I tried to celebrate Mass in the Church of St. Augustine, so that we could feel the connection with the beloved Mother Church of our Diocese; however, the timing wasn't right. At least we were able to visit the Church, which is also the burial place of St. Monica, the mother of St. Augustine. I knelt at St. Monica's tomb and prayed for all the parishioners of St. Monica Parish, St. Augustine Cathedral Parish, and by extension, all the parishioners of all the parishes of our Diocese. We were able to celebrate Mass at Sancta Sophia, the University where Fr. Ted is taking his Canon Law Graduate Studies, which is just around the corner form St. Augustine Church. So I was very pleased that I got to see where Fr. Ted's advanced education is taking place.
After Mass, and a quick cup of coffee and roll, we made our way to St. Peter's Basilica for the 10:30 a.m. General Audience. We arrived at 9:30, and the Square was already more than half full. I was able to enter through a separate gate and was privileged to be seated with about 25 other Bishops and Cardinals from various places around the world who were present for this Audience. There is an absolutely festive mood as the hundreds of thousands of people excitedly looked forward to Pope Francis' arrival. A little after 10:00, the "PopeMobile" arrived and made its way through the vast throngs of people, periodically stopping so that the Holy Father could get out to see a particular person/persons. Finally he was brought to the stage area where I and the other Bishops were seated, and he gave us all a big smile and wave. Then the Audience began with prayer, and a Scripture passage from the Letter of St. Peter which was proclaimed in multiple languages, including French, English, German, Polish, Spanish, Indian and of course Italian.
The Holy Father's message was about God's unconditional Love and the fact that we never run out of chances to return to The Lord to be one with Him in Love. It was quite beautiful. [read full text here.] Following his message, the Holy Father gave a Blessing which was intended for all religious articles and all those pilgrims who were there, as well as the loved ones and those for whom they were praying back home. So, by extension, you all shared in that blessing given by the Holy Father. Then each Bishop had an opportunity to personally greet the Pope. As it turned out, I was the next to the last Bishop to do so, and yet, when we met, the Pope gave me his full attention. He has a wonderful smile and he simply radiates joy and inner contentment. I told him who I was and how overjoyed I was to personally greet him and assure him of my obedience and unity, and how thrilled we all are that the Holy Spirit had chosen him to be the Vicar of Christ on earth. I told him I was so pleased to be speaking on behalf of all the Catholics in the Diocese of Kalamazoo, and I presented him with the Spiritual Bouquet on behalf of so many people and priests of our Diocese. He was very pleased with that special gift. Finally I showed him the Icon of St. Francis which one of our very own, Jeanette Aleo, painted in honor of Pope Francis, and which we intend to hang in a prominent place of honor. When he saw it, his eyes lit up as he blessed it, and I know he was very pleased with that as well. (To read Bishop Bradley’s complete message to Pope Francis click here.).
When the Audience was over, the Pope was taken away in the PopeMobile and once again travelled through the crowds, waving and blessing and occasionally stopping. We stayed over on the side where we knew the Pope would travel at the end to return to his residence. This was a long stretch approximately 100 yards long, along which were lined up, side by side, at least 250 people with special needs or disabilities of various sorts who were confined to wheelchairs, along with some of their immediate family and caretakers. When the PopeMobile got to them, the Holy Father got out, and went to each and every person along those 100 yards, giving each of them his absolute attention with a pat on the head, a kiss on the cheek, and a big smile and blessing. That had to have taken close to 30 minutes. He was very deliberate, and oh, so pastoral---so Christ-like.
Dear Family of Faith, I saw with my own eyes today, on this final day of this pilgrimage to the Eternal City, that our Holy Father is indeed "holy" and a true "father" to all of us, the sons and daughters of God, and brothers and sisters in Christ. We are truly blessed! The Church is truly blessed! The world is truly blessed with his spiritual and pastoral leadership with the simplicity of St. Francis, and the heroic, sacrificial, and servant love of Christ Himself.
The rest of the day was spent doing a bit more touring. Msgr. Osborn took me on my own personal tour of San Clemente, the oldest church in Rome---even older than St. Peter's. It was quite fascinating, as only Msgr. Osborn could make it. This evening all of us----Msgr. Osborn, Father Ted, Deacon Tom, Michael Emmons and myself----enjoyed our final meal together in a very Italian restaurant. We toasted the Holy Father; we toasted the Church, and we toasted the priests, religious and lay faithful of the Diocese of Kalamazoo.
We will leave early tomorrow morning, following the celebration of Mass here at the Casa Santa Maria, to begin our journey to bring us back home. Thank you all for your prayers and for sharing in this pilgrimage by reading these daily "Reflections.” May God bless you and keep you in His loving care.
+ Bishop Bradley