Anyone who has been on a powerful pilgrimage knows there is no rest upon their return, because if the pilgrimage was a success then they are too on fire to settle down, no matter how far they traveled and no matter how sleep-deprived they may be. There is no returning to their old way of doing things, and no seeing the world the same way again. That is what World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro has done to me.
If in recent days I have found myself overflowing with passion to live a more abundant life, it’s all God’s fault. During my week in Rio, there were so many people joined together by the faith, and so many blessings flowing from those people that, even if I live for another 100 years I won’t exhaust all the grace received from those seven days. I haven’t even had time to read or listen to Pope Francis’ words from World Youth Day in my own language, yet just being there apparently was enough grace to plant a seed that is growing too fast for me to contain.
Throughout my pilgrimage in Rio, there were times when I resisted the effects my surroundings were having on me. I wanted to have an objective point of view of the World Youth Day experience, and observe the collective reaction of the pilgrims around me; but as I witnessed the inexhaustible joy of the young Catholics in the streets day after day, I noticed that there was no way to resist a change in my own soul unless I had a heart of stone.
Now I really understand the Body of Christ. At one point, as I was walking to Copacabana with the group of 22 New Jersey pilgrims for the overnight vigil with Pope Francis, in my stubbornness I said to a priest walking beside me, “I really don’t like the flock mentality.”
Droves of pilgrims were singing, praying and waving their nations’ flags all around me, all apparently professing their impenetrable communion with the Church. Better yet, they were Church; but still there I was claiming that I’d rather live by the beat of my own drum. Right then the priest beside me said, ‘You know the flock mentality is Catholicism.’ At the time I fought that notion, saying it’s important for Catholics to maintain their individuality. But as I observed the unwavering confidence that this priest had in the communal power of the Church, I noticed that my desire for individuality was verging upon individualism.
Popular culture goes to extreme measures to convince young modern Americans that true happiness is acquired by pursuing our personal desires.
But the personal happiness of one individual quickly dims in the joy-filled light of 3.2 million pilgrims who share the deepest source of joy in their lives: their faith. I don’t exaggerate when I say that if a World Youth Day pilgrim had personal faith in Jesus, it was multiplied by the number of other pilgrims who also had that personal faith.
As powerful as that joy was, it was still only the beginning of the World Youth Day experience. As I witnessed crowds from 160 countries singing their native hymns to Jesus and Mary, dancing in the streets, and chanting ‘This is the youth of the Pope,’ I encountered Hope. It wasn’t just a hope in my own future, or a hope that told me if I remain faithful to God all my lifelong desires will be fulfilled.
This was a much more tangible Hope that I could physically see, feel and hear. It was Hope for the world that affirmed that the Church, the mystical Body of Christ on earth, and the greatest force for goodness in the world, isn’t dying but is actually gaining momentum. That is the nature of Christianity, after all. Modern society had it down for the count, but didn’t know of its secret power to rise from the ashes more alive, more rejuvenated, and more youthful than ever before; because the Body of Christ is comprised of People of the Resurrection.
In fact, giving a face to Hope is the very essence of Church. More than anything I know, World Youth Day gives to the world the face of Hope.
My generation wants a sense of mission. That is why Pope Francis’ message rings so true with so many of us. He said ‘You came to World Youth Day as disciples. You leave here as missionaries.’ He topped it off by saying, “Yes, I am calling you to be revolutionaries. I am asking you to rebel against this culture that sees everything as temporary and that ultimately believes that you are incapable of responsibility, that you are incapable of true love.”
As the waves hit the Copacabana beach, he asked us to swim against the tide.
I came to Rio as a lone pilgrim, kind of just hitching onto the New Jersey group that was headed down there. Through my encounters there, however, I noticed that the most unique thing I can do is strive for holiness in our secular society. Like a good parent who knows exactly what we want and need, Pope Francis presented the synthesis between my personal desires for individuality, and my call to be part of the universal Church. If I strive for holiness in my own home community, I will be a genuine revolutionary; but I’ll also be part of a worldwide revolution commissioned by the Vicar of Christ and rooted in the timeless Gospel.
