| Who Can Doubt the Real Presence? |
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On the evening of the last day of his October, 1995 visit to the United States, Pope John Paul II was scheduled to greet the seminarians at St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore. It had been a very full day beginning with Mass & followed by a parade through downtown streets, a visit to the Basilica of the Assumption, lunch at a local soup kitchen run by Catholic Charities, a prayer service at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen and finally, a stop at St. Mary's Seminary. The schedule was tight, so the plan was to simply greet the seminarians while they stood outside on the steps. But, Pope John Paul made his way through the ranks and into the building. His plan was to first make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament. The security personnel quickly flew into action ahead of the Pope. Their activities included a sweep of the building, paying closest attention to the chapel where he would be praying. For this purpose highly trained dogs were used to detect any persons who might be present. The dogs were trained to locate living people in collapsed buildings after earthquakes and other disasters. These sensitive and eager canines went through their rounds in the halls, offices and classrooms quickly and were then sent into the chapel. They went up and down the aisles, past the pews and finally into the side chapel where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved. Upon reaching the tabernacle, the dogs sniffed and whined and pointed, refusing to leave. They were convinced that they had discovered Someone there and firmly remained, until called out by their handlers. We, Catholics know they were right: they found a real, living Person in the tabernacle! |
