Southern Nebraska Register
Many members of the Diocese of Lincoln were affected by the life of Pope Benedict XVI, through his writings, his liturgies, and even personal meetings. Several shared their reflections with the Register.
Father Matthew Rolling
During World Youth Day 2008 in Sydney, Australia, Father Rolling was a seminarian, and attended a Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney with Father Adam Sughroue. During the Mass, he received Holy Communion from Pope Benedict XVI.
“As I think about Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, I am moved to gratitude. From the moment his papacy was announced, I recall being filled with a peace and joy. While his personality and pastoral approach differed from that of his predecessor, Pope St. John Paul II, the perennial message of the Gospel shone through his words. As Successor of St. Peter, he became a father instructing his spiritual children. Of course, his many writings, as well as his addresses and homilies, served to deepen our understanding of God, ourselves, and all of creation.
Additionally, his witness of holiness and prayer inspired me as a priest to take my relationship with God ever more seriously.
“I recall the opportunity to be with him at Mass at Nationals Stadium during his visit to the United States in 2008. As we all recited the Creed during the Mass, I was struck by the reality of professing my own faith in the presence of the Successor to the Prince of the Apostles. That same faith, first professed by St. Peter, I was now able to declare before his successor and, in a real way, be ‘confirmed in that faith’ by Peter himself. For these and many other reasons, I am grateful for the vocation and the witness of Benedict XVI.”
Father Daniel Rayer
“I had the great privilege to receive Holy Communion from Pope Benedict XVI at the Easter Vigil Liturgy at St. Peter’s Basilica March 22, 2008. That was during the time when Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz had sent me to Rome for studies in canon law. Also during that time, Msgr. Jim Reinert (1957-2020) of our diocese was working in the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. It was Msgr. Reinert, through the assistance of his boss, Cardinal Martino, the President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, who obtained the tickets for myself and my parents and brother to receive Holy Communion from the Pope. My parents and my brother were visiting me in Rome for Easter and they were also able to join me in receiving Holy Communion from the Pope that night. It was a memorable Easter for our family!”
Fr. Thomas McGuire
“My favorite work of Pope Benedict XVI was written when he was a priest. It is a series of reflections on the Second Vatican Council. He was a peritus, or an expert, that his bishop, Cardinal Josef Frings, brought with him to the Council. It is said that he and some other theological experts seemed to have great influence on the Council Fathers (bishops and patriarchs).
“When I was at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., I read this book. It was called, “Theological Highlights of Vatican II,” by Joseph Ratzinger. I had heard of his reputation as a scholar by then.
“I noticed on Amazon that it is back in print now. It has another introduction that explains how the thoughts and opinions expressed in it for the most part were still held by Pope Benedict XVI. Some of his expectations of the liturgical renewal did not turn out as he thought. If anyone is interested in reading an expert’s accounts and expected legacy of Vatican II (minus all gossip of the controversies), this is a good book to read.”
Fr. Kenneth Borowiak
“Pope Benedict XVI blessed the cornerstone of St. Michael Catholic School in Lincoln May 11, 2011. Thirty-two parishioners of St. Michael in Lincoln made a pilgrimage to Rome to have the cornerstone blessed. Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz arranged to have the pilgrims receive tickets for the papal audience immediately adjacent to Pope Benedict. I carried the cornerstone to Rome and back. It is on permanent display at St. Michael School in Lincoln.”
Deacon Matthew Schilmoeller
“One of the reasons why seminarians are sent to Rome is to be strengthened in our faith and love for the Roman Pontiff (the words roborant fidem suumque in romanum pontificem amorem are engraved into the stone of our seminary building). Being present in Rome these past days with the chance to visit the body of a pope as it lies in state, to say the Church’s prayers for the dead, and to be present at the funeral rites of a deceased pontiff indeed afforded my heart an experience of great love for the office of the pope.
“There is a renewed appreciation and respect for the many sacrifices which he must undertake in order to confirm the brethren in the faith, and a sober growth in understanding of the weight of the keys which he must hold with endurance to his dying breath. It is a great task, but not one that is undertaken without the assistance and promise of grace. As Christ said to Peter, ‘I have prayed for you Simon, that your faith would not fail; and when you have been converted, confirm your brothers’ (Luke 22:32).
“In prayer and reflection upon the life and witness of the late Benedict XVI, I immediately grasp an increased awareness as to how Jesus Christ continues to invite me deeper into conversion and friendship with Him. I pray that I may live my life forever changed for having been met by Jesus Christ, who has given my life a new horizon and a decisive direction. I pray, too, for greater unity in the Church and that we would live and believe as “Cooperatores Veritatis” (Co-workers in the Truth) which was Benedict’s episcopal motto when he was Archbishop of Munich and Freising. Would that we might commend our spirit to the Father in our last words similar to Benedict’s: ‘Jesus, I love you.’
“May perpetual light shine upon Benedict XVI, and may he rest in peace.”
St. Hilaire family
Terry and Christina St. Hilaire, members of Assumption Parish in Dwight, first met then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in Rome in 1994, when he was Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In 2001, they returned to the Eternal City with their four young children, after living in various parts of the U.S., but not finding the orthodoxy they sought in different American dioceses. They attended Ratziner’s Mass at the German college inside the Vatican, and to their surprise, he remembered the St. Hilaires.
“He listened kindly as we poured out our hearts about the trials we had suffered in various dioceses,” Christina said. “After several encounters with him, he encouraged us to ‘talk to the Bishop of Lincoln.’ We followed his fatherly advice, and with his blessing moved to Lincoln, Nebraska, in 2004, shortly before his election as pope.”
Cardinal Ratzinger, as they still tend to call him, Christina said, “struck us as one of the humblest, kindest men we have ever met. There was a definite aura of sanctity about him that left us in awe. He offered the Holy Mass beautifully in his soft-spoken way, in his native tongue.”
One day after Mass, she recalled, he invited the family to walk with him to the Holy Office. They asked how he handled all the cares of the world that were laid on his desk, to which he replied, “I do what I can, and leave all the rest to God.” He encouraged remembering, “Jesus suffered, too.”
“We will be forever grateful for his inspiring example, courageous teachings,” Christina said, “and the advice that changed the course of our lives and led us to the Lincoln Diocese. May he rest in peace. Pope Benedict, XVI, pray for us!”
The St. Hilaire family were fortunate to continue to hear from Pope Benedict, receiving Christmas cards and a letter on their 25th anniversary.
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