5 years ago…
Let’s see, five years ago today, we were at Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, preparing to come West – with all the final packing and preparations being made.  
More specifically, 
5 years ago today, 
the Sisters and I  were huddled in front of the TV with our 35 Sisters at OLAM  waiting for the white plume of smoke to come from the Sistine Chapel chimney.  I think most Catholics were doing the exact same thing.  
5 years ago…
Cardinal Ratzinger was elected Pope…
5 years ago…
our Church and our world received a great gift in Pope Benedict XVI. 

April 19th, 2005 was a great day indeed!  Seeing Pope Benedict for the first time – as Pope Benedict – as he walked out onto the balcony to be introduced to the world was so moving.  I was too young to remember Pope John Paul II’s election.  So for me, Pope Benedict XVI is the first Pope I’ve seen from the beginning.  I was sitting next to Sr. Marie Andre when they finally announced HABEMUS PAPAM.  We have a Pope.  And then they said “Joseph” and we all knew who it was.  Sr. Andre screamed like she’s never screamed before (or since).  If you know Sister at all, you know she is pretty low key and rarely raises her voice.  But she let out such a scream of delight, I feel certain that Pope Benedict XVI heard it all the way in Rome.  🙂  
As he spoke those first words to us – as our new Holy Father – His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI (one of the greatest minds of our modern age) said so simply: “Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the Lord Cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord. I am consoled by the fact that the Lord knows how to act, even with inadequate instruments and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the Risen Lord, trusting in His permanent help, as we go forward the Lord will help us, and His Mother, Mary Most Holy, is on our side. Thank you.”
It was as if the whole world held their breath, until we heard those words: Habemus Papam!  We have a Pope.  We have a Shepherd.  We have a Father! Ah, then it seemed like the whole world – Catholics and non-Catholics alike – rejoiced that Holy Mother Church had a Shepherd once again at the helm of the ship…and what a Shepherd!  Habemus Papam!
Over the course of the last 5 years, we have witnessed Our Holy Father’s efforts to advance the mission of the Church in simple, brilliant, and striking ways.  He has shown us, time and again, the beauty of the Face of Christ.  He continues to radiant this Face to the flock of Christ.  
Our beloved Holy Father needs our prayers now more than ever.  With vicious attacks in the media, misunderstanding and slander on every side – it’s as if those first words of his ring out again: I entrust myself to your prayers…  
In his inauguration homily on April 24, 2005, Pope Benedict said the following words.  Perhaps it would be good for all of us to read them in light the current state of affairs.  In doing so we see how clearly he is keeping to the course set out at the beginning of his Pontificate…to feed his sheep – the nourishment of  God’s truth…

One of the basic characteristics of a shepherd must be to love the people entrusted to him, even as he loves Christ whom he serves. “Feed my sheep”, says Christ to Peter, and now, at this moment, he says it to me as well. Feeding means loving, and loving also means being ready to suffer. Loving means giving the sheep what is truly good, the nourishment of God’s truth, of God’s word, the nourishment of his presence, which he gives us in the Blessed Sacrament. My dear friends – at this moment I can only say: pray for me, that I may learn to love the Lord more and more. Pray for me, that I may learn to love his flock more and more – in other words, you, the holy Church, each one of you and all of you together. Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves. Let us pray for one another, that the Lord will carry us and that we will learn to carry one another.

We love you, Pope Benedict XVI!  Happy 5th Anniversary!!
You have our prayers…