Cover
story
A
weakened pope with strong words
By NCR Staff
Bowed, with a shuffling walk, his
left hand shaking and his speech slurred, his face mostly devoid of expression,
Pope John Paul II was in most respects the antithesis of the cultural icons who
normally fill the stadiums and arenas that accommodate a papal tour.
Yet, they came, the faithful, his fans young and old. They packed
the venues where the youthful and the beautiful are often on display. And he
wowed them while speaking words that, in themselves, are jarringly out of place
in these stadiums and arenas.
By the time Pope John Paul II had departed St. Louis Lambert
Airport Jan. 27 for the return trip to Rome, this universal teacher had run
through a forceful review of the themes set out during numerous visits in the
past.
Beginning in Mexico on Jan. 22 with a ringing appeal for justice
for the poor and marginalized and concluding in St. Louis with a powerful
denunciation of the death penalty, John Paul repeatedly urged renewed vigilance
by Catholics in defending life along its entire spectrum.
In St. Louis, during a liturgy in front of tens of thousands in
the Trans World Dome, the pope said the churchs program of new
evangelization in the Americas called for Christians who were
unconditionally pro-life.
A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the
dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who
has done great evil, he said. Modern society has the means of
protecting itself without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform.
I renew the appeal I made recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the
death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary, he said, using some
of the strongest language he has yet employed to condemn capital
punishment.
That appeal seemed to bear immediate fruit when Missouri Gov. Mel
Carnahan commuted the death sentence of convicted murderer Darrell Mease Jan.
28, one day after John Paul departed. Mease had been scheduled to die during
the popes visit, but the date was pushed back to Feb. 10.
Now, however, Mease will serve life without parole. In commuting
the sentence, Carnahan said that although he still supports the death penalty,
he commuted Meases sentence because of deep and abiding respect for
the pontiff and all he represents.
The pope also called on the church to help put an end to every
form of racism, saying U.S. bishops have identified it as one of the
nations most persistent and destructive evils.
The popes sermon emphasized the need to protect the family
and promote the gospel of life in a variety of areas. As
believers, how can we fail to see that abortion, euthanasia and assisted
suicide are a terrible rejection of Gods gift of life and love? he
said.
The 78-year-old pope, who has visited the United States on six
previous occasions, demonstrated his talent for exploiting local symbols and
language both to make points and endear himself to the audience.
After arriving Jan. 25, the pope invoked the Spirit of St.
Louis, reminded Americans of the Dred Scott case, praised the baseball
heroics of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, and recalled the importance of the
Louisiana Purchase.
After the Dred Scott case was heard in St. Louis in the mid-1800s,
the pope noted, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that nearly an entire class of
people, those of African descent, had no constitutional rights. It was a case
that spurred the antislavery movement and eventually helped reverse racial
segregation, he said.
That lesson needs to be remembered today, he said, when the
unborn, the terminally ill and others considered unuseful risk
losing legal protection.
At a youth rally, the pope met briefly with McGwire and spoke
about the excitement of the 1998 home-run race.
When his youthful hosts brought him a hockey uniform with his name
on it, he flipped his cane upside down and pretended to shoot a puck. The smile
on his face and the cheers that rang out said it all: This man knew his
audience.
Even though you are young, the time for action is now,
the pope told more than 20,000 youths during his talk at the Kiel Center, home
to the St. Louis Blues hockey team.
You are ready for what Christ wants of you now. He wants you
-- all of you -- to be light to the world, as only young people can be,
he said.
In more somber tones, he spoke of human suffering and the darkness
that exists in the world due to euthanasia, abortion, drugs and sexual
abuse.
Gods gift of life is being rejected. Death is chosen
over life, and this brings with it the darkness and despair.
Speaking slowly and emphatically, he said, Christ is calling
you; the church needs you; the pope believes in you and he expects great things
of you.
He also challenged the country at the start of his 30-hour visit,
during a talk at the airport and just before a private meeting with President
Clinton.
He said the United States faced a time of trial,
stating, Today the conflict is between a culture that affirms, cherishes
and celebrates the gift of life, and a culture that seeks to declare entire
groups of human beings -- the unborn, the terminally ill, the handicapped and
others considered unuseful -- to be outside the boundaries of legal
protection.
A Vatican statement said that the two leaders discussed in private
current challenges to peace and justice around the world.
In prepared remarks, the pope said, My fervent prayer is
that ... America will resist the culture of death and choose to stand
steadfastly on the side of life.
To choose life, he said, means rejecting every form of violence:
poverty and hunger, which oppress so many people; armed conflict, which
increases divisions; weapons of destruction like antipersonnel mines; and other
evils such as drug trafficking, racism and mindless damage to the
environment.
During his five-day visit in Mexico, John Paul affirmed his
confidence in that country and entrusted its people to Our Lady of
Guadalupe.
In his final remarks, he drew attention to migration. God
bless you, Mexico, as you continue to miss your children who emigrate in search
of bread and work. They have also contributed to spread the Catholic faith in
their new environments and to build a united and fraternal America.
The pope also thanked the 500 prelates from other countries who
participated in a ceremony that formally released a document summing up the
Synod of Bishops for America.
An inter-American meeting of bishops will examine the synod
document in Havana in mid-February.
In one appearance, the pope implored Mexicans and all peoples of
the Americas to reverse what he called the moral disorientation of the late
20th century and to build a gospel-based society based.
This is the only way to ward off the threat of a world and a
history without a soul, proud of its technical conquests but lacking hope and
deeper meaning, he said.
Because some powerful people have turned their backs on
Christ, this century watches helplessly as millions of human beings die of
hunger, even if, paradoxically, food and industrial production has
increased, the pope said.
The widening abyss between rich and poor in the world
is another sign of moral failure, he said.
Church officials from Mexicos conflict-ridden state of
Chiapas expressed satisfaction with John Pauls remarks on indigenous
rights and with the document from the synod.
Dominican Fr. Gonzalo Ituarte, vicar for justice and peace in the
San Cristóbal de las Casas diocese in Chiapas, said in a news conference
Jan. 25 that the popes remarks and the synod document were an affirmation
of the work of the church in San Cristóbal.
Its a beautiful gift to hear the pope once again
insisting on the importance of the option for the poor, courage for the
indigenous people and the defense of human rights, he said.
In response to questions from reporters, 74-year-old Bishop Samuel
Ruiz García of San Cristóbal de las Casas said indigenous people,
as subjects in history, are transforming the Americas.
In his sermon at Mass at the capitals Hermanos Rodriguez
racetrack Jan. 24, Pope John Paul called for justice for Mexicos
estimated 13 million indigenous people.
This story is based on reports from NCR staff and
Catholic News Service.
National Catholic Reporter, February 5,
1999
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