Pope Benedict XVI’s message of hope Off the Record Barbara Stinson Lee

A young woman was quoted by Catholic News Service at the close of Pope Benedict XVI’s rally with young people. “He believes is us more than we believe in ourselves.”

Some would say simply, “That’s his job.” But that isn’t how a pope has to see his job.

Pope Benedict XVI could have come here with a stern attitude instead of a smiling one. He could have shaken his finger at some of us, and we would have deserved it. Instead, he came bearing a message of hope; the same message of hope that has imbued his papacy ever since he was elected three years ago.

This, his first visit to the United States, was a joy to witness. We found joy in him as he found joy in us. A lot of gestures of compassion and grace were packed into the visit – his visit to Ground Zero and the comfort he offered victims and families there, and his visit with victims of clergy sexual abuse. One victim said she went into the meeting with plans for what she wanted to say. “But all that came were tears,” she said. “He seemed to understand the need for that.”

Out of tragedy, Pope Benedict brought hope. He spoke of what has made the American Catholic Church a gift to this country. He talked about our churches, our Catholic schools, our hospitals, and our social service agencies, and he talked about the religious freedom in which they flourish here.

He also tackled our problems head-on. He spoke of secularism, the moral crossroads we face, societal breakdown that challenges our faith, violence, and the tendency of some “to embrace attitudes contrary to the Gospel.” But he also took time to praise the American church, calling it a prophetic witness to the problems, and he reminded us during the Mass at Yankee Stadium that, “the church has contributed significantly to the growth of America as a whole.”

He visited a New York Synagogue, and he engaged Catholic educators at Catholic University of America. At the Mass at Nationals Park Pope Benedict called for more sound instruction in the faith for children and adults, and he challenged all of us to create a mind set that is genuinely Catholic. He spoke of healing and reconciliation as if they are the fertile soil of the hope to which he so often referred.

Pope Benedict called us again and again people of hope, leaven of hope, and people who are open to the Christian message.

The challenge he offered the United Nations, he also offers us – that we should engage in interreligious dialogue. Noting that most representatives in the United Nations speak languages of faith, he challenged them and us to propose a vision of faith for the whole world, broken as it is. He called on all believers, encouraging them not to suppress their faith in order to be active citizens of the world or any country in the world.

Yes, he believes in us more than we believe in ourselves. He has more hope in us than we do ourselves. He credits us with more courage than we think we have and more good judgment and compassion than we can remember showing lately.

My prayer is that we can all somehow find the hope Pope Benedict found in us.