JFK AIRPORT — This past Christmas season, the Peace Light, a continuous flame from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, did not make its traditional stop in New York City.
For the past two decades, the flame has passed through John F. Kennedy International Airport, where it has served as a beacon of hope for people of many nations, carrying a message of peace from the birth of Christ.
But this year, the Peace Light could not travel because there was no peace in the Holy Land, according to Father Cezariusz Jastrzębski, the Catholic chaplain at the airport and pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Jamaica.
Nevertheless, Pope Leo XIV provided a solution for the guild and Father Jastrzębski to rally around during an event meant to inspire peace at the airport — the so-called “Crossroads of the World.”
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Instead of a flame, the new pope sent a patinated bronze sculpture, set on a wooden base. Called the “Delicate Flower,” it depicts a dandelion and a small bird hidden within a crack of a stone wall.
“I think this beautiful sculpture describes peace perfectly,” Father Jastrzębski said, “because peace is a fragile flower.”
The sculpture was received just in time for a Ceremony of International Unity at the airport on Dec. 20, which was held instead of the annual Peace Light ceremony that had been organized by local scouts, and the airport’s Our Lady of the Skies Chapel and Catholic Guild.
Over the years, the Peace Light ceremony drew many participants, including airline passengers and airport workers, who joined in prayers for peace.
Father Jastrzębski said he was notified in November that the Peace Light would not be able to travel this year. Alternatively, he and the guild planned the Ceremony of International Unity.
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The chaplain said he initially contacted the Vatican to explore the possibility of receiving a different flame — the Papal Light of Peace from the Vatican, which is lit from the Eternal Flame in St. Peter’s Basilica and blessed personally by the Holy Father.
“This gesture,” Father Jastrzębski wrote in his request to the Vatican, “would not replace the Bethlehem tradition but rather fulfill it spiritually — as a reminder that the light of Christ and the peace of Bethlehem radiate from the living heart of the Church.”
He added that the airport’s Ceremony of International Unity would align with Pope Leo’s efforts to foster peace through his visits to Turkey and Lebanon in late November and early December.
“The event,” he further wrote, “would stand as a visible testimony that, even in times of war, the Church continues to proclaim: ‘The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it,’ (John 1:5).”
Father Jastrzębski said he sent his request via email the morning of Nov. 3. A response came from Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, stationed in Washington, D.C.
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Cardinal Pierre wrote that the Papal Light of Peace was not available for the Dec. 20 event at the airport, but Pope Leo did not want to leave the organizers empty-handed.
Therefore, the Vatican sent the “Delicate Flower” sculpture by artist Daniela Fusco of Rome, as “an alternative symbolic gift.”
The profoundly grateful Father Jastrzębski and the supporting cast conducted the Ceremony of International Unity as planned, with prayers and performances by the musical group, Totus Tuus. Together, they proudly displayed the pope’s gift to the masses of holiday travelers in Terminal 4.
Now, Father Jastrzębski said he and the guild are planning to permanently mount the sculpture in the chapel.