Bernardin: Funeral
Mass today
CHICAGO -- Fourteen years ago, then-Archbishop Joseph Bernardin entered a darkened Holy Name Cathedral filled with the priests of his new archdiocese. He carried a paschal candle, symbolic of the light he hoped to bring to an organization in turmoil.
On Tuesday night, as priests gathered again in the darkened cathedral, another candle stood next to Cardinal Bernardin's coffin. Of the more than 60,000 visitors who had paid their respects to the cardinal by Tuesday evening, few felt a greater sense of loss than the 1,000 men in black.
After a reading of Scripture and prayers, the Rev. Jeremiah Boland, chairman of the Chicago Council of Priests, read a meditation on the priesthood written by Cardinal Bernardin in the weeks before his death.
The meditation was taken from The Gift of Peace - the cardinal's final book, which was completed by the ailing prelate Nov. 1 and is due to be published after Christmas.
''He restored for a lot of priests a sense of hope and confidence in the priesthood and in the ministry of the church,'' said Father Boland before the service. ''He came at a time when we were very disspirited and there was a lot of alienation. From the get-go, he challenged us to let go of a lot of all of that and start anew."
At the cardinal's request, the Rev. Scott Donahue, head of a Chicago children's charity, delivered the homily.
He recounted how ''after making his wishes known, with that bright twinkle in his eyes and his telling, gentle smile, he said 'Now, don't embarrass me..."
''Most importantly, he loved us, his priests. He saw in us his 'field of dreams,''' Father Donahue said. ''He called us to be brothers to one another, challenging us to reconcile and to put aside our differences. He was so very proud of us."
A handful of priests from the Archdiocese of Cincinnati joined Chicago's priests for the service, which interrupted public viewing of the cardinal's body for about an hour. Like the service in 1982, the priests filed up to the candle and took a bit of light back to their seats with them.
The Rev. Rick Marzheuser, academic dean of Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Mount Washington, drove from Cincinnati on Tuesday and planned to return today.
''I was supposed to be in Washington for a meeting, and I canceled it and came up here,'' Father Marzheuser said. ''I felt I had to be here for this. I can go to lots of meetings, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime event."
The priests' service came after a morning ecumenical gathering and an afternoon tribute by the leaders of Chicago's Jewish community. Crowds continued for more than an hour to view the body.
Preparations for today's Mass of Christian burial also continued Tuesday. Officials now expect nine cardinals and at least 157 bishops - including Cincinnati Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk, Auxiliary Bishop Carl Moeddel and Covington Bishop Robert Muench - in the audience, as well as Vice President Al Gore and other dignitaries.
The biggest block, about 500 places, in the 1,500-seat cathedral will go to priests. Another 200 to 300 of them will watch the Mass in a nearby auditorium.
Between 300 and 400 tickets will go to people who served the archdiocese in some way, and 30 to 40 more will be ecumenical and interfaith delegates.
The government delegation of about 50 people will be led by Mr. Gore and his wife, Tipper; White House chief of staff Leon Panetta; Raymond Flynn, the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican and a former mayor of Boston; and other state, county and city officials.
Published Nov. 20, 1996.
