Recently, The Xavierite spoke to a student from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, who had the privilege of attending Pope Francis’ inauguration mass on March 19, 2013.
Brian Geary, a senior music education major at U. of I., shared his experiences from this once-in-a- lifetime event.
“It was really incredible to be there for such an historic moment and realizing that the Catholic Church is so much more than what we know in America,” said Geary as he described his most memorable moments.
He and 12 other U. of I. students were there as part of a pilgrimage organized by the Sites and Saints organization. The trip had been planned far in advance of Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation and its
participants had not anticipated that they would be witnessing such history.
Geary reported that he observed about 200,000 people in Saint Peter’s Square, mostly young people between the ages of 20 and 40. “If anyone thinks the Catholic Church isn’t alive and well, they just need an experience like that,” he exclaimed.
He described seeing the new pope himself: “I was first struck by how friendly the Pope seemed,” said Geary. “He was always smiling, especially as he went through the crowds. During his homily, I could tell he was really engaging, and even though I couldn’t understand most of what he said, he was clearly very passionate.”
Though the Papal inauguration Mass was not the only part of the pilgrimage, Geary called it the highlight.
He recalled one moment in particular that made an impact on him: “Our group, standing together, prayed a Rosary. After the Rosary, we sang a traditional Latin Marian hymn (Salve Regina). Some people standing next to us, who didn’t know English joined in on the hymn. It was wonderful to share that with our Catholic brothers and sisters around the globe.”
Regarding the new pope, Geary believes “Pope Francis will be a beacon of hope and truth for the coming age.”
By Tony Bara, Editor in Chief
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