Pope Benedict XVI blesses ground zero

NEW YORK -- Pope Benedict XVI ended his first U.S. pilgrimage Sunday, completing a mission aimed at renovating and rebuilding the troubled Roman Catholic Church in the United States with moving appearances at two iconic sites, the crater where the World Trade Center once stood and Yankee Stadium.

By many accounts he succeeded -- by tackling consistently and directly the pedophilia crisis that has undermined the church in America, and by casting commitment to Catholic life in a vividly positive light rather than a recriminatory litany of prohibitions.

He lauded the integration of immigrants, spoke forcefully in defense of human rights and made a plea for Catholic unity to overcome painful differences.

"Today's celebration is more than an occasion of gratitude for graces received," he said at the packed baseball stadium. "It is also a summons to move forward with firm resolve to use wisely the blessings of freedom, in order to build a future of hope for coming generations."

In the most solemn moment of the six-day tour, Benedict prayed Sunday at the site of the Sept. 11 attacks. He sprinkled holy water in each direction of the compass, blessing as hallowed ground the scarred land where nearly 3,000 people lost their lives.

Benedict walked down a concrete ramp to ground zero, subdued in chilled fog, still and quiet, save for a cellist from the New York Philharmonic who played mournful movements from Bach.

The pope knelt and prayed silently at a small reflecting pool symbolizing renewal, then read aloud a prayer for victims, survivors and "those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred."

"God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world," he said. "God of understanding, overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy, we seek your light and guidance as we confront such terrible events."

Twenty-four people representing survivors, victims' families, firefighters, police and paramedics attended the half-hour ceremony, ringing the pope as he prayed and then meeting him one by one.

With each person, Benedict spoke a few words and looked deeply into their eyes. Several kissed his ring. One woman wept, later giving long hugs to several of her fellow survivors.

Faith restored

Thomas Riches, a firefighter whose firefighting brother was among the first to respond on Sept. 11 and was killed, was among the people who attended the ceremony.

"We carried my brother out of there, so it was kind of hard to walk back down there," Riches told a local television station. "But the pope being there made it worth it. . . . It was good to see him there."

His father, Jim, added: "My faith was destroyed that day. We asked, 'Where was God?' on 9/11. He came back here today and restored our faith."

"He put kind of closure to our sorrow," Rose Mazza, whose daughter was killed in the attacks and who was among those greeted by the pope, told NY1 television station. "He recognized this is hallowed ground. He blessed it, and it was a good thing."

Christy Ferer, whose husband, Neil Levin, was the executive director of New York's Port Authority and was killed in the Sept. 11 attack, said, "It was a privilege that the pope chose to bless bedrock at ground zero and took the time to hear individual stories of victims, first responders and survivors.

"I thanked him for his decision to visit ground zero and bless the ground and reach out to family members," she said. "I told him it was Passover and that the timing of his visit was all the more meaningful."

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who attended along with the governors of New York and New Jersey, said he was not disturbed that the pope, implicitly, prayed also for terrorists.

"He's always been a man of peace," Bloomberg said as he walked away from the crater. "He believes we can live together and he's praying for everyone."

Cheering reception