Text: Archbishop Kelly at Shrine of Our Lady of Guadeloupe

Pope John Paul II sent his 'prayerful best wishes' to all delegates at the International Catholic Foundation at the Service of Deaf People (ICF) currently taking place in Mexico City. The Opening Mass of the conference was celebrated on Sunday in the Church of San Hippolito in Mexico City. The Celebrant was Cardinal Norberto Rivera, Archbishop of Mexico City with the Most Reverend Patrick Kelly, Archbishop of Liverpool and President of the International Catholic Federation at the service of Deaf People concelebrating. Yesterday, the Feast of Our Lady of the Snows, Archbishop Kelly celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadeloupe and gave the following homily. Today in Rome, 1,500 years ago, snow fell. In August it is very hot in Rome. Then the name of the Pope was: Liberius. He held the crook of a Bishop: he drew in the snow a plan for a Church. 1500 years ago. The first Church of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, in Rome. Last year the Pope of today, John Paul II gave a gift to all of us: five new ways to pray the Rosary. He called them: the luminous ways: the showing ways. Now, take the Rosary of Mexico: notice, in the middle of the cross a window, a light: in the light Mary, the Mother of Jesus, Our Lord: Our Lady of Guadeloupe. The cross: the light, Mary, together. Light, beauty, peace, but through the cross. Mary our Queen, raised up to heaven, but Mary in the centre of the cross. The five new ways given to us by the Pope all point to the cross: light through the cross: the ways lead to the cross. The first way: Jesus is baptised. Watch, see: the Holy Spirit comes down and hovers over Jesus. The Father signs: 'This is my Son.' He is life, he is light, he is peace, he is good. But the Holy Spirit, a dove with wings outstretched is a cross. Jesus is the Son, the sign, the light of the Father: but see the cross. The second way: a fiesta in Cana, Mary is watching, there is no more wine. Mary is watching all of us: she sees no joy, no peace, no wine. She knows: My Son can give joy and peace. But Jesus says to her: 'Mother, I can only give peace through my glory; and my glory is the cross': peace, joy, light through the cross. The third way: Jesus proclaims: the kingdom of God is coming close: God is coming to forgive, to heal, to change, to make us holy. But God will do all this through the death of Jesus: mercy, forgiveness, holiness, life, light, through the cross. The fourth way: one day, Jesus went up a high mountain: his face shines like the sun; his clothes are changed into white as snow; the Father signs: 'This is my Son; I love him: receive his signs.' But Moses and Elijah come to the same mountain; Jesus and Moses and Elijah sign together; they sign the death of Jesus in Jerusalem: light, beauty, life, through the cross. The fifth way. At the last supper, before Jesus died, Jesus took bread: Jesus thanked you, Father; Jesus broke the bread; Jesus gave it to his friends and said: 'Take this, all of you, and eat it, this is my body which will be given up for you'. The Body of Jesus gives us life; the body of Jesus gives us joy, peace, light. But Jesus signed: 'My blood will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven.' Peace, light through the death of Jesus. Life through the cross of Jesus. And we remember: next to the cross of Jesus, Mary, his Mother stood. Mary received the signs of God; Mary followed the way of God; Mary shows us the way to light. A window in a cross. This way will make all things new. This is the way to find the new Jerusalem: a new heaven, a new earth. God lives with us: we receive light, joy and peace. We have followed the way God has shown us: he has led us to Mary, to Guadaloupe: to a window in a cross. We have come together from east and west, from north and south. That is why, because we are one family, one church, we receive light, joy, peace for ever and ever. Source: Archdiocese of Liverpool