U.S. Papal Visit Is Opportunity For Churches
Episcopal News Service. August 20, 1987 [87170]
Andy Taylor, Diocese of Southeast Florida
MIAMI (DPS, Aug. 20) -- The Pope is coming, and while the visit is being billed as an intense effort to expose the pontiff to the rich diversity of American religion -- including the diversity within his own Communion -- it is also by its nature a very public spectacle.
For Pope John Paul II's ten-day visit to the United States, there will be 100-foot crosses, giant altars and Holy Communion for throngs. In Miami alone, there will be 2,400 National Guardsmen, 8,000 chrysanthemums and 1.5 million ice cubes; in San Antonio, leather boots for the Pope, and, at the main Mass, Texas cowboys showing off; at the Mass in New Orleans, jazz players will star. Along the Pope's nine-city route there will be papal tee-shirts and cardboard masks and a vast array of other souvenirs, some tasteful.
In Miami, where John Paul begins his tour on Sept. 10, Episcopalians were called upon to look beyond the trappings and mass logistics which have fascinated secular media, to the real significance of the visit.
The Rt. Rev. Calvin O. Schofield, bishop of the Diocese of Southeast Florida and the first Episcopal leader to welcome the Pope on this tour, pointed out that a main reason for John Paul's coming "is promoting Roman Catholic dialogue with other denominations to further the bringing-together of the whole of Christ's Church." He added, "It is important that Episcopalians keep this very much in mind as they form their personal reactions to the presence of the Pope."
"The real meaning of the papal tour could be easily overlooked in its treatment in the news media as an event in itself, a celebrity happening more than a significant religious occasion," Schofield said. "As people committed to the cause of Christ, I think we have a responsibility to view things from a mature Christian perspective."
These comments echoed those made in an ecumenical statement signed by Presiding Bishop Edmond L. Browning, officers of the National Council of Churches and a host of Protestant and Orthodox leaders.
"During September 1987 Christians throughout the United States welcome John Paul II, pastor of all Roman Catholic Christians. We pray that his pastoral visit may support the ministries of all Catholics and may strengthen the ties among all who confess Christ the Lord and Savior. We desire to reach beyond what still separates us, by returning in faith in hope to the foundation of our faith, Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 3-11). In this message we call upon all Christians to seize this moment as an opportunity for renewed common witness before a divided and hurting world."
Schofield will attend a special papal Mass Thursday evening, Sept. 10, at the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Mary in Miami, and on Friday morning will welcome the Pope on behalf of the Episcopal Church at a public Mass expected to attract upward of 250,000 people.
From Miami, John Paul's schedule will take him to Columbia, S.C., on Sept. 11; New Orleans, Sept. 12-13; San Antonio, Sept. 13-14; Phoenix, Sept. 14-15; Los Angeles, Sept. 15-16; Monterey, Calif., Sept. 17; San Francisco, Sept. 17-18; and Detroit, Sept. 18-19.
Browning, who met with the Pope at the Vatican in January, will join Protestant and Orthodox leaders in Columbia for an exchange of papers and formal meeting. The papers are expected to lift up areas of potential common ministry as well as delve into areas of common concern.
Schofield, in his comments on the Pope's visit, said that its positive aspects include more than the value of the level of attention usually reserved for presidents and presidential candidates being accorded to a legitimate religious figure. "More important in a religious context is the cause of ecumenism, which the papal visit will move ahead," he said. He pointed to the Episcopal Church's commitment to the ARCIC dialogue between the Anglican and Roman churches and recent reports of progress.
During his overnight stay in Miami, John Paul II will meet with representatives of Roman Catholic clergy from around the United States to confront problems of human sexuality, women in ordained ministry and pastoral needs of the clergy, issues also being dealt with in the Episcopal and other Anglican churches.
"He brings fresh exposure to these matters and reminds us that these are not our problems alone," Schofield said. "It is my hope," he added, "that Episcopalians will keep such positive considerations in mind while the Pope is in our midst. He comes to do good, and it is in that context that we should welcome him."