The CatholiCity Message
Volume VI, Number 14 – July 31, 2002
Dear CatholiCity Citizen,
Our heart is bursting with love. We just got back from World Youth Day in Toronto, and we know it will be one of the biggest challenges to convey the experience to you...but first...
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"We must learn to love goodness until we can drink death like water."
Archbishop Fulton Sheen
1. A MUST READ. HOPE.
Trust us, you need to read Deal Hudson's article called "The Bishop's Secret Letter" currently posted on the CatholiCity homepage. It truly is a scoop, and has huge implications for the Catholic Church in North America:
(GO TO CATHOLIC NEWSWIRE ARCHIVES FOR ARTICLE)
2. THE FIRST WORLD YOUTH DAY
They were still telling Polish jokes at the time. In 1979, the newly elected pope, John Paul II, had a trip scheduled to New York City. At virtually the last minute, he decided he wanted to "meet young people" and letters were quickly sent to parishes in the tri-state area asking them to choose a high school student to attend a "private meeting" in Madison Square Garden with the new pontiff. Over 20,000 young folks were on hand for the gathering, which lasted an hour longer than scheduled because the Holy Father was having such a blast singing songs with the kids, answering questions, and basically getting to know the young people. Not long after this impromptu gathering, John Paul told his advisors that he wanted to begin holding what he would call World Youth Day around the world, and today he considers that last-minute meeting in Madison Square Garden the first World Youth Day. After participating in last week's World Youth Day in Toronto, we've come to realize that every soul in our Catholic generation is a flower in the eternal, beautiful and vast garden planted by this holy man.
Like most of you, we never knew that the Madision Square Garden gathering was the first World Youth Day. A priest just told us the story last week. Many of us who were in high school in 1979 and remember JP II's visit to New York are pushing forty; hardly "youths" anymore. In 1979, your author was just another kid growing up in New Jersey–seventeen years old. We didn't know jack. We didn't know you. Now we're together. It's all very humbling. We were chosen, just as you have been, to give our life to Christ.
We know what it is to be called by Pope John Paul II; he called us directly, for your author was one of those kids in Madison Square Garden, with John Paul II, the Magnificent Pole, on that day---cheering, yelling, singing, praying, and crying. He changed our life on that day. He changed your life, too, which blows our mind. He changed the world. That's what he does; he changes the world, because he is Christ on Earth. Our only response must be a profound gratitude, a heart exploding with love, and a firm resolve to follow him/Him to the end of time.
3. LET'S PRAY TOGETHER
Long ago we adopted the pope's official motto, which we pray every morning. You've likely heard it. The short Latin form is "Totus Tuus." The full English translation makes for a beautiful act of consecration, and we invite you to join in praying it with us and the Holy Father, all 70,000+ of us, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit...
"I am all yours, Mary, and all that I have is yours. Amen."
4. NOT GOOD ENOUGH
It's strikes us as funny that we attended the first World Youth Day in New York and never knew it until we attended the latest one in Toronto last week, our "second" World Youth Day. We were thinking about you, our beloved Citizens of CatholiCity, all week. We often prayed for you, prostrate, before my Savior at the Eucharistic Adoration Pavilion set up by Youth 2000, where we had the honor of distributing many thousands of free books and CDs. As we got more juiced by the transformational event, we kept asking ourselves, "How am we going to describe this in the CatholiCity Message and do it any justice?" Ultimately, we concluded that the supernatural dynamic shared by the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims has to be experienced to be understood. We're just not talented enough to describe it.
A friend of ours, a beautiful woman in every way, described it best to us as we sat on a stone railing, basking in the glow of it all, watching tens of thousands of pilgrims walk by in groups, smiling, waving flags, and singing songs. We sat within a few paces of the Eucharistic Jesus. She said, "This is what heaven is like. You will feel love for everyone." Yes, yes, it was like being in heaven. A glimpse, but the clearest glimpse we've ever seen. We want you to see heaven, too.
We're already thinking about how to help those of you who are of age attend the 2005 World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany together. You, our families, our friends, and all devoted Mary Foundation & Saint Jude Media benefactors and CatholiCity Citizens, together, with each other and the Holy Father, who has a way of taking down the walls and barriers caused by Original Sin that keep us from being in union with each other. We will experience heaven, together. We'll have more details to follow in the coming years as our crack staff starts formulating a plan.
That's enough for one message. Our heart is bursting. Our fingers sing on the keys of the computer. We can't see you from here. But you are with us. We hold the keys to each others' hearts. Thank you, John Paul. We are all yours.
With Christ,
Your Friends at CatholiCity
