John Allen Writes About the LA Congress



This is where I was last week. I actually spoke with John as we were walking from one conference to another. I joked about some of his leading candidates in Conclave dying off. He mentioned that he is under contract to revise the book every two years.



Of the people he mentions hearing, I did hear Father Tony speak at a youth rally. I also heard John speak just before the Native American Liturgy in the Arena, but none of the others.



Here is a sampling of his column:



Go to The Word From Rome for his full report.



The congress is an incredible event, reflecting the energy, the diversity, and the sheer size of Los Angeles itself. A friend who works for the U.S. bishops observed that it's remarkable that so many lay Catholics --somewhere around 22,000 --would give up a beautiful Southern California weekend to sit through what amounted to a series of lectures on ministry, trends in catechesis, and the issues facing John Paul's successor. For three days, the Anaheim Convention Center literally buzzed with Catholicity.