LeGatt reflects on
receiving the pallium from the pope
By Kiply Lukan Yaworski
SASKATOON — Receiving
the pallium — a symbolic woolen band worn over the neck, chest
and shoulders of an archbishop — at St. Peter’s Basilica
in Rome this summer was a profound experience of unity and connection
with the universal church, said St. Boniface Archbishop Albert LeGatt
during a recent visit to Saskatoon.
LeGatt and 37 other recently
appointed archbishops from around the world received the pallium from
Pope Benedict XVI at a celebration held each year on the Feast of Sts.
Peter and Paul.
“During the celebration
there was this whole sense of continuity and universality, of faithfulness
carried on in the church, throughout the world,” said LeGatt,
the only Canadian archbishop to receive the pallium this year.
“In terms of the whole
sense of unity — I certainly felt it when just before the celebration
I was talking with different archbishops from around the world,”
LeGatt said.
“Some were from the
United States, others from England. There was an Oblate from Lesotho,
Africa and there was the Archbishop of Hà Nôi in Vietnam,
where the church has gone through so many struggles in terms of the
shifting relationship with the government, having been persecuted in
the past.”
LeGatt said he keenly felt
the connection between the Holy Father, the worldwide church and the
faithful in the local church of St. Boniface.
“In that sense of unity
of the faith, unity of the church, the celebration with the Holy Father
obviously focused on the ministry of Peter, the ministry of the pope
shared with us as archbishops,” he said.
“However, having had
a year serving in St. Boniface — and having come to know the people
of the archdiocese somewhat through a series of meetings, consultations,
celebrations and confirmations over the past year — it was that
local diocesan church that I carried with me,” LeGatt said.
“With its history as
the first diocese of all of Western Canada, but also its present reality,
in all of its people and in its priests — it was the Archdiocese
of St. Boniface that I was bringing to this celebration at the tomb
of St. Peter. There was a sense of carrying the archdiocese and all
the parishes in faith and in prayer to this celebration. It was very
moving.”
In the midst of the solemn
celebrations and the breathtaking surroundings, there was a beautiful
simplicity in the mass and the ceremony of receiving the pallium from
the Holy Father, added LeGatt, noting especially the warmth of the pope’s
welcome. “It was wonderful just to see the joy he showed, the
joy in sharing this mission, in sharing together this responsibility
for the sake of the church. There was a human touch, as he shared words
with us, words of encouragement and thanks.”
The symbolism of the pallium,
woven from the wool of lambs blessed by the pope earlier in the year
on the Feast of St. Agnes, hearkens back to Jesus the lamb of God, and
his yoke of service. The strip of woolen cloth adorned with six crosses
is a sign of the pope’s ministry and authority shared with archbishops,
said LeGatt, stressing that this authority is given for the sake of
communion and of continuing the mission of Jesus Christ in the world.
“I stood thinking of
the great Peter and Paul, the great martyrs, the great teachers, as
well as the great popes and archbishops of history, receiving that incredible
heritage, and also the awesomeness of carrying it on,” he said.
“And of course, each age has its own way of calling forth people
to grow in their faith, share that faith, to share their talents.”
The sense of connection also
included those in attendance at the celebration who provided their prayerful
support, he noted. This included Archbishop Dom Antonio Muniz Fernandes,
O Carm, of Maceió, Brazil (where several missionaries from the
Diocese of Saskatoon are serving), whom LeGatt came to know during his
time as bishop of Saskatoon.
Also attending the celebration was LeGatt’s predecessor, St. Boniface
Archbishop Emeritus Emilius Goulet, PSS. It was another moment of continuity
and connectedness when LeGatt and Goulet met Pope Benedict together
for a few moments at a general audience the day after the celebration.
“Again there was that sense of support and of the ongoing mission,”
LeGatt said.
During that meeting, LeGatt
presented Pope Benedict with a gift from the Archdiocese of St. Boniface:
musical recordings by Rev. Robert McDougall, who provides retreat ministry
in the archdiocese.
Before he returned home, LeGatt was also able to pray at the tomb of the archdiocese’s patron, St. Boniface, at the cathedral in Fulda, Germany.
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