John Cardinal O'Connor's Funeral Inspires Pro-Lifers

But Some Pro-Abortion Politicians Frustrated

New York City (May 8) - - The funeral mass for John Cardinal O'Connor was an extraordinary national event, attended by an estimated 3,500 relatives, clergy, members of the archdiocesan staff, friends, and invited guests.

The importance of the ceremony was underscored by the presence of Vatican Secretary of State, Angelo Cardinal Sodano, who was the principal celebrant and personally represented His Holiness Pope John Paul II. A total of 15 cardinals and almost 2,000 bishops, priests, deacons, and nuns attended the mass.

The mass attracted a number of local and national political figures, including former president George Bush, Texas Governor and Mrs. George W. Bush, New York Governor George Pataki, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, President and Mrs. Clinton, Vice President and Mrs. Gore, Senator Charles Schumer, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and former mayors Ed Koch and David Dinkins.

Bernard Cardinal Law, a close friend of Cardinal O'Connor's, delivered what to many seemed to be a classic "O'Connor"-style homily. Referring to Cardinal O'Connor's ability to tackle the key moral issues of the day, Cardinal Law said, "He made this pulpit unique in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States."

At one key point during his homily, Cardinal Law reminded the faithful of Cardinal O'Connor's "constant reminder that the church must always be unambiguously pro-life." The homily was immediately interrupted by nearly two minutes of enthusiastic applause which seemed to shake the 120- year-old St. Patrick's Cathedral to its very foundation. Just as the applause seemed to be subsiding, one of the Sisters of Life simply stood up, rekindling the enthusiasm of the attendees, who then gave a thundering standing ovation for an additional minute.

During this incredible show of pro-life support, video cameras trained on President and Mrs. Clinton and Vice President Gore, who showed their decided discomfort with the unexpected response of the attendees. Most of the other political figures who espouse a pro-abortion position refrained from applauding and most appeared unnerved by the spectacle. Finally, as the ovation was ending, President and Mrs. Clinton stood in what aides described as a gesture of respect to the Church and the Cardinal, though they did not applaud.

Texas Gov. George W. Bush and his father, the former president, who support the Catholic Church's position that seeks to restore legal protection to the unborn, joined in the applause immediately.

Cardinal Law made a simple, clear, direct statement articulating the Catholic Church's strong and unambiguous stand in favor of protecting innocent human life. Because this statement of basic truth is simple, direct, and uncomplicated, it undoubtedly troubled those who promote the culture of death which has so debased our society.

While the attendees were still on their feet, Cardinal Law remarked, "I see he [Cardinal O'Connor] hasn't left the pulpit."

Cardinal Law went on to say that "God gifted him with a keen and subtle intellect, an uncommon rhetorical skill, a knack for the dramatic gesture, a sharp wit and an outrageous sense of humor, all of which he used in the service of preaching."

The funeral mass ended after almost two and a half hours with a procession to a crypt below the altar where Cardinal O'Connor's mortal remains will rest beside those of his predecessor Terrence Cardinal Cooke and other shepherds of the Archdiocese of New York.

Above all, he wanted to be remembered as a simple parish priest and that was perhaps the basic quality that made him the formidable public figure he became. O'Connor's goal was simple and basic. His lack of lust for power and notoriety enabled him to proclaim the gospel and teachings of the church without concern for any "political" fallout.

When he was installed as archbishop in New York, Cardinal O'Connor paraphrased President Kennedy's statement in Berlin by saying, "Ich bin ein New Yorker." Even though he never said it, it would have been even more appropriate for Cardinal O'Connor to have said, "Ich bin ein pro-lifer," because he was pro-life from the top of his head to the tips of his toes.

Cardinal O'Connor was one of us. He made himself available to us as a group and as individuals. He understood us. He worked with us. He ministered to us. He counseled us. He cried with us. He knelt in prayer with us. He helped us bury our dead. And now he has taught us how to die and has gone before us firm in his faith of a Christian salvation.

A great pro-life leader has gone before us. May we never forget his friendship, his commitment, and his leadership.

To the pro-life movement he was truly the simple parish priest he always wanted to be.