Acta Apostolicae Sedis - Commentarium Officiale290

II

Ad sacerdotes, religiosos viros et mulieres, sacrorum alumnos in cathedrale

templum Sancti Patricii congregatos.*

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

With great affection in the Lord, I greet all of you, who represent the

Bishops, priests and deacons, the men and women in consecrated life, and the

seminarians of the United States. I thank Cardinal Egan for his warm wel-

come and the good wishes which he has expressed in your name as I begin the

fourth year of my papal ministry. I am happy to celebrate this Mass with

you, who have been chosen by the Lord, who have answered his call, and who

devote your lives to the pursuit of holiness, the spread of the Gospel and the

building up of the Church in faith, hope and love.

Gathered as we are in this historic cathedral, how can we not think of the

countless men and women who have gone before us, who labored for the

growth of the Church in the United States, and left us a lasting legacy of

faith and good works? In today's first reading we saw how, in the power of

the Holy Spirit, the Apostles went forth from the Upper Room to proclaim

God's mighty works to people of every nation and tongue. In this country,

the Church's mission has always involved drawing people ''from every nation

under heaven'' 1 into spiritual unity, and enriching the Body of Christ by the

variety of their gifts. As we give thanks for these precious past blessings, and

look to the challenges of the future, let us implore from God the grace of a

new Pentecost for the Church in America. May tongues of fire, combining

burning love of God and neighbor with zeal for the spread of Christ's King-

dom, descend on all present!

In this morning's second reading, Saint Paul reminds us that spiritual

unity - the unity which reconciles and enriches diversity - has its origin

and supreme model in the life of the triune God. As a communion of pure love

and infinite freedom, the Blessed Trinity constantly brings forth new life in

the work of creation and redemption. The Church, as ''a people made one by

* Die 19 Aprilis 2008. 1 Cf. Acts 2:5.