Washington D.C., Nov 18, 2019 / 14:30 pm
Mary unites all of God's children, sparking conversions among those of different faiths, said Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco on Saturday, Nov. 16.
The archbishop pointed to Mary as a force for conversion and unity among different peoples at the first-ever Mass of the Americas in the Extraordinary Form, held at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
"This Mass we celebrate today, the 'Mass of the Americas,' speaks profoundly to the power of our Mother to unite her children," said Cordileone in his homily. "She stands there in every generation of the Church, interceding to her Son for her children, actively leading them to him, united as one in him."
The Mass of the Americas is a "twinned tribute" to both Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. It was commissioned by the Benedict XVI Institute for Sacred Music and Divine Worship, and was first celebrated Dec. 8, 2018, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Since its debut, it has gone on a "Marian unity tour" throughout North America, which included a stop in Washington, DC.
The Benedict XVI Institute for Sacred Music and Divine Worship's website states that it is an organization dedicated to "open[ing] the door of Beauty to God" through providing resources for "more beautiful and reverent liturgies" as well as "energizing a Catholic culture of the arts."
It was no accident that Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared as a mixed-race woman who could appeal both to native Mexicans and the Spanish settlers, and that her image resulted in the conversion of an entire country, explained Cordileone.
"She appeared at a time of great conflict, turbulence and bloodshed, to form a new Christian people for her Son, not by the sword nor by human sacrifice, but by the love of a mother who identifies herself with her children," he said.
"After [the apparition] Mexico became Catholic: Our Lady of Guadalupe unites the Old World and the New, and so a new Christian people is formed from the two, a mestizo people; a new Christian civilization is born from the union brought about by her who is venerated as both la Morenita and la Inmaculada," the archbishop said.
Cordileone also spoke about how the Church is open to all, regardless of their material worth, and that it is a chance for people to satisfy the innate human hunger for beauty. The archbishop pointed to the Extraordinary Form liturgy, music, and vestments as a form of assisting humanity in their desire for beautiful things.
"Perhaps what the poor most lack in their lives is beauty: being dignified by that beauty which ennobles and elevates the soul, assuring them of their equal dignity as a fellow child of God whom God created in His image and likeness," said Cordileone.
Poverty, said the archbishop, is not just limited to a lack of material goods. "There is also spiritual poverty, a poverty of the soul. The absence of beauty and prevalence of the ugly eventually corrupts a soul, leading to spiritual misery," he said.
Evidence of this spiritual poverty is found in increasing rates of depression, "irrational intolerance" of people with differing views, and predation of the less fortunate, he said. Despite living in the United States, "the most affluent society in the history of the world," America is still overrun with "Anger, division, injustice and depression."
The Church's three transcendentals of beauty, truth, and goodness are one way to combat this divide.
"We are happy to come together today to offer something beautiful to God and to express our love for the Mother of His Son: we give our best, because we are motivated by love, which settles for nothing less," he said.
"And here our Blessed Mother is once again uniting us: the poor with the well-to-do and the in between, from every nation, race, people and tongue."
