4th Sunday of Easter
By Fr. Victor Feltes
Churches should be marked by great beauty. Beauty attracts and delights. God, among his other perfections, is capital “B” Beauty, so a beautiful church glorifies God among us and helps draw people to him. One of the most famous and beautiful churches in the world is St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. St. Peter’s Basilica is actually a shrine for the burial site of St. Peter the Apostle. He was crucified upside-down on Vatican Hill by the Romans and buried in a nearby cemetery. And in the early 1940s, archeological excavations below the main altar discovered what are most likely his bones. Jesus gave Peter his name, which means “Rock,” and said, “Upon this Rock, I will build my Church.” And today we see the largest and most renowned Christian Church in the world is built above that Rock.
It is wonderful for churches to be beautiful, but it is also important for our church architecture and decorations and to be meaningful—reflecting truths of our faith. For instance, St. Peter’s Basilica is capped by a dome designed by Michelangelo which is the world’s tallest. And two colonnades designed by Bernini, extend out in front of the basilica on both sides around St. Peter’s Square. The effect of this dome and these colonnades together present an image of God the Father. As one approaches St. Peter’s Square, the dome is like his head, the church is like his chest, and the colonnades are like his arms. God the Father is reaching out to beckon, welcome, receive, and embrace all people of the world. When St. Peter’s Square is filled with pilgrims as we saw last week it is like St. John’s vision in today’s second reading, “a great multitude… from every nation, race, people, and tongue,” joyfully standing before God the Father and the Lamb of God. The Kingdom of Heaven begins for us now in his Church on earth.
Once you enter inside St. Peter’s Basilica the architecture there also conveys spiritual truth. The dimensions are huge. The distance from the floor to ceiling—not under dome but in the nave of the basilica—is 152 feet. That’s about twelve stories high; and yet because of architectural tricks of perspective you do not feel tiny. For instance, there are two tiers of statues in alcoves along the sides—lower and higher—but the statues on the higher level are actually bigger than the lower statues so that when you look up at those saints they do not seem so distant. The scale of the arches, doors, and windows make you feel like you are inside of, not a hollow skyscraper, but a great, beautiful mansion. It is an image of the Father’s house, where there is room enough for a countless multitude but where no one is made to feel small or unimportant. In heaven, everyone is valued and has a place with God.
Last Thursday, from the exterior balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica called the Loggia of the Blessings, Pope Leo XIV was introduced to the world. It was quite a surprise and a moment we will remember the rest of our lives. In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus says his sheep have been given into his hand by the Father. Our Lord has now entrusted us into Pope Leo’s hands as well. I did not know much about him before the conclave, but I am excited by what I have seen and heard since.
Some people have predicted and hoped for a quiet papacy where very little will happen. But I do not want a quiet pope when so many people need Jesus, his Gospel, and his Church. Pope Leo has spoken insightfully—both years before and following his election—about evangelization in our time, and I look forward to him being a “Lion” for the Gospel. I do not expect our American pope to show the United States special favoritism, nor should he, but I believe this pope will be a great blessing for the Church in our country. When you freeze or boil water, nothing happens before the temperature reaches a threshold. But with the addition or subtraction of just a few more degrees the liquid transforms into a solid or gas. I believe this new American pope will trigger many fruitful responses in those whom God is already calling. There is a new openness and hunger in our culture and I believe great things will happen.
Yet do not just sit back and wait for the pope and priests to draw people closer to Christ. By your sacrificial love, by your Christian joy, by your growing devotion, by your deepening holiness, by your Catholic witness, by your unashamed invitations, the Lord wants you to help bring others—people you know—to a fuller relationship with him and his Church. The papal motto of Pope Leo XIV is the same as he chose when he became a bishop. It comes from a homily of St. Augustine: “In the One, we are one.” (That is, “In Christ, we are one.”) In Christ we are called to all be truly one, and each of us in these years of Pope Leo ahead have important parts to play.
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