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Saint Vincent de Paul
Roman Catholic Church
979 Avenue C -
Bayonne, New Jersey 07002
(201) 436-2222 Fax:(201) 437-5235
Founded 1894
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[Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults] [Pope Benedict XVI]
  Pope
Benedict XVI
Apostolic Journey to the United States
April 15 - 20, 2008
Prepared text as released by the Vatican of
Pope Benedict’s address during the departure ceremony at John F. Kennedy
International Airport:
Mr. Vice-President,
Distinguished Civil Authorities,
My Brother Bishops,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The time has come for me to bid farewell to your country. These days that
I have spent in the United States have been blessed with many memorable
experiences of American hospitality, and I wish to express my deep
appreciation to all of you for your kind welcome. It has been a joy for me
to witness the faith and devotion of the Catholic community here. It was
heart-warming to spend time with leaders and representatives of other
Christian communities and other religions, and I renew my assurances of
respect and esteem to all of you. I am grateful to President Bush for
kindly coming to greet me at the start of my visit, and I thank
Vice-President Cheney for his presence here as I depart. The civic
authorities, workers and volunteers in Washington and New York have given
generously of their time and resources in order to ensure the smooth
progress of my visit at every stage, and for this I express my profound
thanks and appreciation to Mayor Adrian Fenty of Washington and Mayor
Michael Bloomberg of New York.
Once again I offer prayerful good wishes to the representatives of the see
of Baltimore, the first Archdiocese, and those of New York, Boston,
Philadelphia and Louisville, in this jubilee year. May the Lord continue
to bless you in the years ahead. To all my Brother Bishops, to Bishop
DiMarzio of this Diocese of Brooklyn, and to the officers and staff of the
Episcopal Conference who have contributed in so many ways to the
preparation of this visit, I extend my renewed gratitude for their hard
work and dedication. With great affection I greet once more the priests
and religious, the deacons, the seminarians and young people, and all the
faithful in the United States, and I encourage you to continue bearing
joyful witness to Christ our Hope, our Risen Lord and Savior, who makes
all things new and gives us life in abundance.
One of the high-points of my visit was the opportunity to address the
General Assembly of the United Nations, and I thank Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon for his kind invitation and welcome. Looking back over the sixty
years that have passed since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I
give thanks for all that the Organization has been able to achieve in
defending and promoting the fundamental rights of every man, woman and
child throughout the world, and I encourage people of good will everywhere
to continue working tirelessly to promote justice and peaceful
co-existence between peoples and nations.
My visit this morning to Ground Zero will remain firmly etched in my
memory, as I continue to pray for those who died and for all who suffer in
consequence of the tragedy that occurred there in 2001. For all the people
of America, and indeed throughout the world, I pray that the future will
bring increased fraternity and solidarity, a growth in mutual respect, and
a renewed trust and confidence in God, our heavenly Father.
With these words, I take my leave, I ask you to remember me in your
prayers, and I assure you of my affection and friendship in the Lord. May
God bless America! |