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Benedict in Americapope’s entire visit tangibly demonstratedhow the attacks have changed theUnited States, the ground zero visit gavethe pope an opportunity to speak to andconsole those whose lives were changedmost directly that day. Twenty-fourpeople stood around a candle, a plot ofearth and a tiny pond as the pope kneltin prayer, including family members ofthose killed, some of the survivors andrepresentatives of the first respondersfrom the New York Port Authority,police and fire departments. At the bottomof the 70-foot crater where thetowers had stood, surrounded by steelconstruction rods, forklifts and steelbeams, Pope Benedict looked up pastthe skyscrapers shrouded in fog and reada prayer.Pope Meets WithTheologian Avery DullesDuring his whirlwind U.S. visit, PopeBenedict XVI took a few moments outfor a private meeting with one ofAmerica’s preeminent theologians,Cardinal Avery Dulles, S.J. Thewheelchair-bound scholar traveled fromhis residence at Jesuit-run FordhamUniversity’s Rose Hill campus in theBronx to St. Joseph’s Seminary inYonkers, N.Y., April 19, for a prearrangedprivate meeting with the pope,just after the pontiff met with disabledyouths. “It was a lovely meeting,” saidAnne-Marie Kirmse, O.P., who has beenthe cardinal’s executive assistant for thepast 20 years. She was present to helpfacilitate the get-together, held at theseminary. “The pope literally boundedinto the room with a big smile on hisface,” she told Catholic News Service onApril 21. “He went directly to whereCardinal Dulles was sitting, saying,‘Eminenza, Eminenza, Eminenza, I recallthe work you did for the InternationalTheological Commission in the 1990s.’”States amid a cheering crowd of 4,000people who had come to see him off.“It has been a joy for me to witness thefaith and devotion of the Catholiccommunity here,” the pope said April20 in brief remarks to those gatheredin Hanger 19 at John F. KennedyInternational Airport. “It was heartwarmingto spend time with leadersand representatives of other Christiancommunities and other religions,”Pope Benedict added. Among thosepresent were Cardinal Edward M.Egan of New York; Bishop William F.Murphy of Rockville Centre;Archbishop Pietro Sambi, apostolicnuncio to the U.S.; and BishopNicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn, whosediocese includes the airport. Also inattendance were Mayor MichaelBloomberg of New York and VicePresident Dick Cheney and his wife,Lynne. “It has been a memorableweek, and Pope Benedict XVI hasstepped into the history of our countryin a special way,” Cheney said.Multicultural Mix ofAncient and ModernThe liturgical celebration of Mass byPope Benedict XVI on April 17 inNationals Park reflected the diversity ofCatholic heritages and sensibilities foundin the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.,where the Mass was held. It acknowledgedboth the roots of tradition and thebranches that have sprouted from thoseroots. The prayer of the faithful wasrecited in six languages—English,Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalogand Igbo. The sung response to theintentions incorporated three languages:English, Latin and Spanish. The firstreading—the account of how the apostlesstarted speaking in tongues unknownto them at Pentecost—was proclaimed inSpanish. Music composed in the 40 yearssince the conclusion of the SecondVatican Council was included, as wereancient Latin texts set to chant—and aLatin-language Gloria written in the pastdecade.Pope Reaches out to Disabled ChildrenFaith of U.S. Catholics‘A Joy to Witness’Thanking Americans for their hospitality,Pope Benedict XVI left the UnitedFrom CNS and other sources. CNS photos.Pope Benedict XVI greets a girl during a gathering with young people with disabilities at St.Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y., on April 19.6 America May 5, 2008