Pleas for peace and the dignity of every person from Catholic and United Nations leaders marked the United Nations Annual Prayer Service, held at the Church of the Holy Family, the United Nations Parish, in Manhattan.
Organized by the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations, the September 8 service preceded the opening of the 80th General Assembly of the United Nations on Tuesday.
Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Holy See’s permanent observer, was joined by Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Also in attendance were United Nations Secretary-General António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres and President of the 80th UN General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, the former foreign minister of Germany.
In his opening remarks, Guterres, who is Catholic, presented in unvarnished terms the upcoming work of the General Assembly. “This past year has tested our world. War has torn families and communities apart, reaching unimaginable levels of vulgarity. Trust between nations has eroded. Our planet is burning, scarred by greed and neglect. Inequalities are growing. And the fabric of our common humanity is fraying. Everywhere we see the consequences of inequality, indifference, and injustice,” he said.
Guterres spoke of Pope Leo XIV as a voice of hope. “He has spoken powerfully about restoring the dignity of every person, especially the poor, the displaced, and the forgotten. He reminds us that the strength of a society is measured not by its awesome power, but by how it treats its most vulnerable.”
Baerbock spoke in similarly stark terms. “When we look honestly at the world on the eve of the 80th session of the U.N. General Assembly, dear excellencies, dear Mr. Secretary-General, we are not living up to our commitments, made in our own world religions, made in our own U.N. charter. Not when more than 808 million people live in extreme poverty. Not when conflicts from Sudan to Ukraine to Gaza are leaving parents to bury their children, and children to grow up without their parents.”
“Yes, we need hope and prayer, but prayers cannot be passive. We do not pray for problems to vanish. We pray for the courage to confront them. We pray to act where action is hard, not easy. We pray to choose cooperation when division is easier. We pray to uphold dignity when it’s under assault,” she said.
The evening’s service was Vespers for the Memorial of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. After prayer and music by the Schola Cantorum of St. Vincent Ferrer, a parish on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan, Archbishop Broglio offered a reflection.
“It seems significant that we gather on a day dedicated to a young Jewish mother, revered by Christians and Muslims alike. She is even mentioned twice in the Quran. Traditionally, this liturgical feast invites us to consider that mighty God does not improvise. Rather, He continually prepares for the signs of his hope in human history to which humanity is sometimes open,” he said.
Archbishop Broglio remembered the October 1965 visit of Pope Pius VI to the United Nations, the first ever by a pope. That was the only time he ever saw a television in his Catholic school classroom, he recalled, as he and his fellow students were allowed to watch part of the coverage of the Ppope’s visit.
During his 1965 visit, Pope Pius VI celebrated Mass at Holy Family Church, ahead of his historic visit and speech to the United Nations. Holy Family is now part of the parish of Holy Family – Saint John the Evangelist – Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church. Monsignor Douglas Mathers, who assisted with Monday night’s service, is its pastor.
Archbishop Broglio returned to the theme of hope at the conclusion of his reflection. “I recall this Marian feast, but you gather in the last three months of the Jubilee proclaimed by the late Pope Francis. Some of his sentiments apply well to the tasks you face, and I quote: ‘Let us even now be drawn to this hope. Through our witness, may hope spread to all of those who anxiously seek it. May the way we live our lives say to them in so many words, hope in the Lord, hold firm, take heart, and hope in the Lord. May the power of hope fill our days as we await in confidence the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom we praise and glory, now and forever.'”
Following intercessions offered in each of the United Nations’ six official languages, Archbishop Caccia concluded the service by blessing those in attendance and offering prayers for the success of the upcoming assembly.