"Cor ad Cor Loquitur:" this phrase of Saint Francis de Sales, which Newman took as his own when he became Cardinal, is the theme of Pope Benedict's Apostolic Voyage. This morning in the cavernous Westminster Cathedral of the Precious Blood, that is dominated by an immense suspended Crucifix, the Pope used the striking image to focus his homily visually. He said:

The visitor to this Cathedral cannot fail to be struck by the great crucifix dominating the nave, which portrays Christs body, crushed by suffering, overwhelmed by sorrow, the innocent victim whose death has reconciled us with the Father and given us a share in the very life of God. The Lords outstretched arms seem to embrace this entire church, lifting up to the Father all the ranks of the faithful who gather around the altar of the Eucharistic sacrifice and share in its fruits. The crucified Lord stands above and before us as the source of our life and salvation, the high priest of the good things to come, as the author of the Letter to the Hebrews calls him in todays first reading (Heb 9:11).It is in the shadow, so to speak, of this striking image, that I would like to consider the word of God which has been proclaimed in our midst and reflect on the mystery of the Precious Blood. For that mystery leads us to see the unity between Christs sacrifice on the Cross, the Eucharistic sacrifice which he has given to his Church, and his eternal priesthood, whereby, seated at the right hand of the Father, he makes unceasing intercession for us, the members of his mystical body.

After the lovely Mass (which contained two prolonged periods of silence -- after the homily and after communion), the Pope went outside the cathedral to greet a host of young people come from all the dioceses. He was greeted by a young black teenager, representing the parishes of London, who spoke movingly of the commitment of young people to the faith.The Pope said, addressing the young people:

I ask each of you, first and foremost, to look into your own heart. Think of all the love that your heart was made to receive, and all the love it is meant to give. After all, we were made for love. This is what the Bible means when it says that we are made in the image and likeness of God: we were made to know the God of love, the God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and to find our supreme fulfilment in that divine love that knows no beginning or end.

And he continued:

I ask you to look into your hearts each day to find the source of all true love. Jesus is always there, quietly waiting for us to be still with him and to hear his voice. Deep within your heart, he is calling you to spend time with him in prayer. But this kind of prayer, real prayer, requires discipline; it requires making time for moments of silence every day. Often it means waiting for the Lord to speak. Even amid the busy-ness and the stress of our daily lives, we need to make space for silence, because it is in silence that we find God, and in silence that we discover our true self. And in discovering our true self, we discover the particular vocation which God has given us for the building up of his Church and the redemption of our world.

Most moving of all was the embrace that was exchanged between Pope Benedict and the young man who had welcomed him. It was a prolonged and heartfelt exchange: "heart speaks to heart."The homily and words to the young people are here.