JOURNEY OF FAITH

[Music] as I watched the unfolding of this Jubilee journey of faith love and hope and relived my pilgrimage to Rome my heart was uplifted and my spirit strengthened and it is my fervent prayer that all who will view this film will have a deeper devotion to God and also a greater charity towards their neighbors as to their own prayers and other good works they will gain eternal salvation in heaven as well as peace enduring honor st. Peter's the most renowned Church in Christendom Center of the universal faith glory of the Roman Catholic world in the holy year of our Lord 1950 His Eminence Francis Cardinal Spellman sailed as the spiritual leader of the New York archdiocese and pilgrimage to Rome the Seas they sail become as the hearts and minds of men and women meditated upon their great purifying mission of faith for our journey to Rome was a time of spiritual preparation in this shipboard chapel the 500 pilgrims attended daily Mass [Music] Ash Wednesday fell on our fourth day at sea his eminence distributed holy ashes to the faithful who had answered the call to this holy year pilgrimage a reminder of the sorrow we should feel for our sins as the most solemn Lenten season dawns [Music] at the close of each day the pilgrims gathered before the altar in the main salon for the benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament [Music] pre-easter season of the whole year the cardinal archbishop blesses his pilgrims as he leaves them to an audience with our Holy Father seldom have American Catholics had more cause for Thanksgiving more cause for humility for the Cardinal and five of his friends it was more than a pilgrimage it was a reunion for all classmates who were seminarians together in Rome 40 years before Monsignor Edward print of Cincinnati mancinas McCarthy and Keeley of Chicago Friends of His Eminence in their student days at the American College also Monsignor Agnew of Chicago and Father Lawrence Killian of Boston [Music] benediction in the basura at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima and the hills outside of Lisbon the first stop of the pilgrims on the journey to the Holy See it's noble spire towering above the olive groves and grain fields that clothe the surrounding slopes stands as human to the faith and Industry of Portugal's Catholics the stone to the church another steps down which the pilgrims marched for hand hewn from the rugged Sierra Estrela mountains and lovingly shaped by native stone cutters of great artistry here in 1917 three simple peasant children saw the vision of Our Lady and heard the prediction of World War two with the warning at the only hope for peace in this world was that right a gold todd with all men must fight and work and pray out of the Atlantic through the Straits into the Mediterranean on a placid Sunday morning as we passed the famous Rock of Gibraltar it formed a picturesque backdrop for the mass that His Eminence was celebrating on the aft deck [Music] the pilgrims were filled with the spiritual adventure of Fatima filled with the predictions of the Virgin to the three children as we steamed through peaceful waters were so many bitter battles of World War two or fought the cardinal besought Almighty God for continuing peace in times fraught with international suspicion and jealousy and hate [Music] gulls from the South European and North African shores followed as our pilgrim ship headed for the historic island of Malta the fine weather and placid seas that we had known in usually stormy February and March continued the captain and crew called it spellman weather the Cardinal who knew every pilgrim by name strolled among us every day on the bright blue morning of the twelfth day the steamer Atlantic rode slowly into the harbor of historic Malta the capital city Valletta anxiously awaited the visit of the American pilgrims the home of the historically renowned Knights of Malta in our pilgrim party for a dozen members of the Order membership in witches bestowed upon laymen for devoted service to the faith small gondolas swamped around the big ship to take our people ashore here where st. Paul was shipwrecked in the first century flanked by the British Governor General and Maltese Archbishop Ganzi the Cardinal from the balcony of the governor's palace addressed 50,000 massed in the square they heard praise of their faith and courage from the American Cardinal who had shared their wartime seeds back in 1943 95% of the people on this tiny island are staunch Roman Catholics [Music] [Applause] the harbour of Naples Capri and Vesuvius in the distance here on this bright afternoon the pilgrims were to leave the ship that had been home in church for two weeks His Eminence said goodbye to captain Martin Ollie as the mayor of Naples came abroad for the auxiliary bishop to welcome the cardinal and his pilgrims only a short train trip lay between us and Rome Rome the Vatican st. Peter's next morning we began the visits to our four patriarchal basilica's st. John Lateran st. Mary major st. Paul's outside the walls st. Peters was to be the last with the reward of Jubilee indulgences here we were entering st. Paul's outside the walls these were days of supplication and prayers for forgiveness confession and penance in this Eternal City of the Silica's and churches few are more meaningful to Americans than the Church of st. John and Paul well this is the Paris Church in Rome assigned by our Holy Father to Cardinal Spellman it is tradition that every prince of the church be a parish priest of wrong to this church now in the process of restoration under the passionate father's went our pilgrims and here the Cardinal celebrated Holy Mass the pilgrims were prepared for the most exalting spiritual adventures that can come to a pilgrim the visit to st. Peter's a beatification ceremony and an audience with the Vicar of Christ on earth [Music] st. Peters the love inspiring final goal of pilgrims not only in the whole year but down through the ages his eminence carrying the cross flanked by Monsignors O'Donnell and Giblin with lighted candles followed by the American flag this is the supreme experience of a lifetime for the pilgrims approaching the holy door which is opened only every 25 years in holy year this is the climax of their devotion to the faith the hour of purification [Music] the mighty crowd inside estimated that more than 100,000 was gathered for the beatification of Dominic Savio in these pictures the 530 members of the pilgrimage with the 40 priests and Monsignors who accompanied them were entering through the holy door there is a feeling in every heart that this is a sacred place sanctified by the tomb and the bones of Saint Peter then the most inspiring spectacle that any Roman Catholic will ever be privileged to save his holiness born into the world's most magnificent Basilica around the splendid bronze altar where only the Pope himself says Mass the altar over which towers the mighty Dome designed by Michelangelo the altar beneath which lies the crypt of st. Peter this is the holy picture of blessed Dominic Savio patron of school children since blessed Dominic was a student of the Silesian father's every young boy from the Silesian schools in Italy is present at Saint Peter's for his beatification Cardinal Spellman walks there behind the stadia just tutoria the chair upon which His Holiness Pope Pius the 12th is carried surrounded by Vatican chamber lanes and Nobles the colourful Swiss and Vatican Guards the cheers echo throughout the cruciform Basilica and to the vaulted dome for the pilgrims gathered here from all corners of the universe this Fiat vacation ceremony marked the climax of their journey of faith [Applause] the pilgrimage at an end those who accompanied his eminence became sightseers in Florence most tireless of all was the Cardinal [Music] here were the Medici left monuments to their own fame and fortune we listened as the guide explained points of interest about this historic city can on the french riviera were our ship the atlantic was waiting to take us on our homeward journey we brought memories of Fatima of Malta of Naples and Rome Milan Florence and nice ahead of us lay Barcelona and Tangier and then the long voyage to New York here as everywhere we had gone there were homage and tributes ceremonies and receptions both civic and religious for His Eminence in informal moments the smile never faded from his lips and he impressed all our hosts with his ability to speak their languages Italian French Portuguese and Spanish [Music] on the hills that look down on the blue Mediterranean we went to witness a religious ritual dance of Amazing Grace and intricate activity it was in celebration of the spring planting and the dancers were descendants of peasants who had to form this pattern of joyous steps centuries and centuries ago Cardinal Spellman participated in this age all ritual the pile of that he was to light was symbolic of the fires of spring that the good Lord sends to warm the earth symbolic tour the sacred flame of life which they implore God to breathe into the soil for the nourishment of their crops the Cardinals act of igniting their ritual fire will these devout French peasants believe ensure an abundant harvest in the autumn an interesting demonstration of simple faith and great devotion that has come down through the ages [Music] Manresa in Spain where st. ignatius loyola meditated in the cave beneath the cathedral which lies in the shadow of famed mount Seurat this is the birthplace of the Society of Jesus popularly called the Jesuits founded over more than 400 years ago many of its members came to America as missionaries and explorers there was a great rush of people to the doors of the church by natives eager to see the American Cardinal and his people [Applause] [Music] inside the Ottawa's bedecked with flags of religious orders and societies many of whose members had been travelling for days for a glimpse and blessing from Cardinal Spellman these were people who tour magnificent men tillers from their heads and beautiful handmade ties from their necks to present to us their guests all these gifts came from their hearts the Spanish were proud that our Cardinal spoke to them in their own tongue [Music] the sailing flag hoisted on the mast of the Atlantic signaled the end of our stay in Europe [Music] [Music] the Azores last outposts of the old world slid past us as we steamed homeward from Africa and many of us stood at the rail Seine silent farewells to this old world the Democratic spirit of Cardinal Spellman mingling as he did daily with the passengers amazed the Italian crew the Seas kicked up as soon as we left the Azores behind the weather gave us a bad time practically all the 3,000 miles halt his eminence continue to hold and to attend services every day although the pilgrimage itself had ended and wrong the rosary our last day at sea far from feeling that our religious duties were done that the indulgences we had gained excused us from prayer and supplication we pilgrims seem to have taken our new fervor and devotion after our inspiring journey the evening before we were scheduled to arrive in New York the storm ended the rainbow God's reminder of a sinful world once destroyed appeared on the horizon our spirits lifted to the heavens as we went to bid his eminence farewell the end of our journey of faith that had brought us forgiveness indulgence and grace in the holy year of our Lord 1950 [Music]