CHICAGO (OSV News) — In what started out as a cloudy afternoon, the then bright and sunny stadium of Pope Leo XIV’s favorite baseball team, Chicago’s faithful cheered on one of their own’s election to the papacy. The June 14 celebration, organized by the Archdiocese of Chicago, included a series of short video clips and first-ever airing of Pope Leo XIV’s video message to the world’s youth at Rate Field on Chicago’s Southside.
In the message, Pope Leo encouraged young people to look inside themselves, recognize God’s presence in their own hearts and “recognize that God is present and that, perhaps in many different ways, God is reaching out to you, calling you, inviting you to know his Son Jesus Christ, through the Scriptures, perhaps through a friend or a relative… a grandparent, who might be a person of faith.”
He emphasized the importance of recognizing this, especially “that longing for love in our lives, for … searching, a true searching, for finding the ways that we may be able to do something with our own lives to serve others.”
Pope Leo also extended an invitation to join this Holy Year to the cheering crowd, which quieted down, eyes to the video monitors across the field. “In this Jubilee Year of Hope, Christ, who is our hope, indeed calls all of us to come together, that we might be that true living example: the light of hope in the world today,” he said.
The program before the scheduled Mass at the stadium included a three-way interview with the host Chuck Swirsky, known to locals as the announcer of the Chicago Bulls NBA team, and Pope Leo’s classmate Augustinian Father John Merkelis, president of the Augustinian Providence High School in a south Chicago suburb, as well as St. Agnes Sister Dianne Bergant, his former professor at Catholic Theological Union, who said he was a very good student.
Father Merkelis talked about his friend “Bob” Prevost’s down-to-earth and humble way. He shared his thoughts about what kind of pope his high school classmate and close friend would be.
“He’s deliberate, he’s thoughtful. He will listen to all sides, but he will make up his own mind. He’ll be clear… He’s a canon lawyer, and he knows how to pastorally apply the law. He’s a prayerful man. And having settled that, he’s a regular guy,” said Father Merkelis.
White Sox Senior Vice President Brooks Boyer addressed the pope directly, should he be watching the livestream.
“On behalf of the White Sox and all of our fans, we’d be honored to have you back here at Rate Field to throw out a ceremonial first pitch. The mound is waiting. Your crowd is certainly ready and your team, the White Sox, is here with open arms,” he said.
The program included a music video produced by the archdiocese of Augustinian Brother David Marshall singing and playing piano to a song he composed about Pope Leo’s Chicago roots, “One of Us.” The song blends a mix of English, Spanish and Latin lyrics, highlighting the phrase “In Illo uno unum” (In the One we are one), Pope Leo XIV’s motto.
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