The powers of evil and death will never triumph over Christ and the church he built on the rock of Peter and continues to fortify with his successors, Pope Benedict XVI told new archbishops from 18 countries.

Though the church and Christ are continually walking toward their cross, suffering and being tossed to and fro like a small boat on a sea whipped up "by the winds of ideologies ... in the suffering church, Christ is victorious," the pope said during a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica for the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul June 29.

During the Mass, the pope gave the archbishops named within the previous year a pallium, a circular band of white wool marked with six black crosses. The pallium symbolizes an archbishop's authority and unity with the pope.

Among the 27 archbishops receiving palliums were U.S. Archbishops Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, George H. Niederauer of San Francisco and Donald W. Wuerl of Washington.

In his homily, the pope recalled the trials of Job after God allowed Satan to test the man's faith. Similar trials continue to befall Christ's faithful, and sometimes "it seems that God gives Satan too much freedom" and "the capacity to shake us up too terribly."

But, just as Jesus prayed for Peter, he prays for the church and its people "that your own faith may not fail," he said.

After the ceremony, Archbishop Niederauer told Catholic News Service that when the pope talked about Jesus heading toward Jerusalem for his suffering and resurrection "that road is going to be the same for us."

"We will not evade that cross, we will not evade the confrontations that come, but in Christ we will be able to carry our crosses ... and be able to keep the promise we made to Peter, the church" and Christ, he said.

---CNS