At Mass, and on the journey to N.Y., 'a feeling of oneness'

NEW YORK - It was a 200-mile journey, four hours by bus. But for the 3,000 Boston-area Catholics who traveled to Yankee Stadium yesterday, the spiritual journey was much longer.

"I've had some trouble recently with my faith," said Kristen Darling, a 21-year old student at Anna Maria College in Paxton. But Darling was glad she made the trip with her mother and father. "Today brought me much closer to God," she said.

For many, the trip began at dawn. The sun had just risen over the horizon as 80 Catholics from parishes across the area gathered at Boston College High School to board buses to New York.

Among them was the youth group from St. Ann's in Neponset, a Hingham couple who had traveled to see Mass with John Paul II 21 years before, and a Guatemalan woman whose faith remains strong despite some of her conflicts with the church's social positions.

Before departing, the Rev. Thomas Foley, pastor at St. Ann's, led the group in a prayer for a safe journey.

"May it be a wonderful experience in faith," he said.

Foley, who did not make the trip, left the bus with a shout of "Vive el Papa!"

A congenial atmosphere took root almost immediately. Before the caravan had reached the Mass. Pike, strangers were sharing snacks and swapping stories, while in the back the girls from St. Ann's sang songs they'd learned at a youth group retreat.

"Our God is an awesome God," they sang, fingers dancing as they signed the words.

Several of the girls had gone to a sleepover the night before, so shut-eye was in short supply.

"I slept five hours last night," said Rae-Anna Muise, 13, of Dorchester, who lay across two seats flipping through a Seventeen magazine, with her friend Michelle Olson, 14, sitting on top of her.

Up front, Clara Garcia passed the time knitting a yellow sweater for one of her grand-nephews. The Jamaica Plain woman, who immigrated here from Guatemala 40 years ago, was excited at the prospect of her first papal Mass with Pope Benedict XVI.

"I feel I need to be a part of this to make our church and our faith stronger," she said.

Though she remains devout, Garcia said she has struggled with how to reconcile her love of the church with her love for her nephew, who is openly gay.

"I can't turn my back on my faith," she said. "I know the church doesn't approve, but I have to move forward."

To help pass the time, St. Ann's youth leader Bob Collins put "The Sound of Music" on the bus's entertainment system. Young and old alike smiled and sang as the Von Trapp family danced across the screen singing, "Doe, a deer, a female deer . . ."

Members of the group knew they were getting close even before they saw Yankee Stadium: Traffic came to a near standstill as the buses converged on their way to the Mass. It was the first of what would end up being many lines they would encounter throughout the day.

Once off the bus, it was a 40-minute wait to pass through security. In line, the girls from St. Ann's made friends with a youth group from Chicago and razzed passersby who were in Yankees gear.

"Oh, you're from Boston?" a security guard asked. "Then you all go up those stairs," he joked, pointing to a pedestrian bridge that led back to the parking lot.

Chaos ensued inside as many unfamiliar with Yankee Stadium struggled to find their seats amid the lines of people waiting for bathrooms and snacks. The sound of hymns and the smell of hot dogs filled the air. Men in Yankees jackets carrying trays of chicken fingers passed by nuns in veils. Knights of Columbus representatives in feathered chapeaus and satin capes rubbed elbows with priests in black cassocks.

"We always say we are a universal church; now we can see it," said Philomene Pean, a Haitian immigrant who came to the Mass with her parish from Everett. "It's different people, different languages. It's amazing."

Many from Boston were delighted by the archdiocese's block of seats, which, although they were in the top tier of the stadium, were located directly behind home plate, giving worshipers a perfect view of the resplendent altar.

"They're great seats," said Tim Higgins of Easton, who attended the Mass with his wife and two children. "The archdiocese really took care of us."

Excitement mounted as the bishops started filing onto the field, and a collective roar rose from the crowd as the popemobile rolled into view. In the front row of the upper tier, Sister Joan Marie Coughlin waved a small bear dressed in a Red Sox jersey.

"I can't believe he's going into the Yankees dugout," she bemoaned as the pontiff disappeared from view. The North Cambridge nun made the trip with her 14-year-old cocker spaniel, Angus Bernard.

Worshipers in the Boston section erupted with excitement when they saw Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, calling his name and waving as he stepped onto the field.

"I hope that this is a time of renewal and hope for Boston," said Mary O'Connor of Belmont.

Worshipers began reflecting on the experience almost as soon as Mass ended.

"It was almost overwhelming," said Kathie McCarthy of Framingham. "It was just such a feeling of oneness and peace; I felt close to everyone here."

"We have a saying in Haiti," Pean said. " 'With hope, you'll survive.' We can feel that today."