Hundreds gathered Aug. 2 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul and St. Olaf Church in Minneapolis to pray for victims of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis Aug. 1.
Coadjutor Archbishop John C. Nienstedt of St. Paul-Minneapolis led the cathedral prayer service, while Father Kevin McDonough, vicar general, presided at a Mass at St. Olaf.
At the cathedral, Archbishop Nienstedt said in his homily that God was not at fault for the disaster. "That was the fault of human causes," he added. "Indeed, my dear brothers and sisters, you and I together and all the citizens of these Twin Cities find ourselves today in the depths of distress."
He acknowledged the "quick and professional response of the city and state officials, police officers and fire personnel, the (American) Red Cross and all those volunteers who assisted those afflicted in this horrible experience."
"In moments of urgent need, it is a consolation to know that there are those who are ready, willing and able to lend a helping hand," he said.
"In the face of this seemingly senseless tragedy, words fail to capture all that our hearts wish to say," he added. "That is why we gather here today, to speak not with human words, but to allow God to speak in his own words."
After the homily, parishioners prayed and reflected quietly. During closing prayers, the archbishop told those gathered to take every opportunity to love their family members, neighbors and friends.
"This tragedy is another prime example of not knowing when the last time to reach out and say you love someone will be," Archbishop Nienstedt said.
After the service, Dr. John Wheeler, a retired internal medicine physician and parishioner at St. Thomas Aquinas in St. Paul Park, wiped away tears.
"In simple words, I felt I had to do something," said Wheeler in explaining why he attended. "I think there is just a real profound sadness that I found pervasive. In my neighborhood, I went for a walk this morning and I bumped into a few neighbors in St. Paul Park and they felt as I did."
"I also thought about the tragedies that happen elsewhere in the world," Wheeler said. "We seem so insulated from that, like this couldn't happen here. When we think about war-torn countries, like Iraq, every day a tragedy like this happens. We have become numb to that."
At St. Olaf, people dressed in business attire filled the downtown church located just blocks from the tragedy. Before the noon Mass, they prayed quietly, lit candles and offered encouraging words to one another. One woman laid a bouquet of yellow roses next to a statue of Mary.
"We are brought home again to the reality today that we live life with a certain contingency, precariously," Father McDonough said during his homily. "Things that we trust, roads and bridges and so on, are subject, because all of life is subject, to failure."
"You can turn that into a message of fear," Father McDonough added. "I don't want it to be that for me, and I hope it's not for you. Rather, it's a reminder of how precious the day that we are given today is, the love that we live in today is, the gift of family and friends and, yes, work and play --- how precious all of these things are."
Father McDonough suggested that everyone take the opportunity to let people in their lives know that they love them.
Joan Eskew, a parishioner of St. Leonard of Port Maurice in Minneapolis who attended the Mass, said she relies on her faith to get her through difficult times.
"Heavens, yes, my faith helps me get through times like this," she said. "You just have to believe it's for a reason. God wouldn't do this just to punish you. ... I'm just praying for (those involved)."
---CNS |