At the beginning of his Migration Mass homily, Cardinal Roger Mahony asked the choir and far right section of the multi-ethnic congregation in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels to rise.

"If we want to know what heaven is going to look like, this is what it's going to look like," he quipped, motioning to the standing Latinos, Asians, African Americans, Native Americans and whites - many wearing colorful native dress.

When the applause died down, he said, "I think that's important for us to recognize. Because especially in our own time, when so many immigrants are coming under attack and all kinds of verbal accusations against them are being made, we fail to recognize that the diversity of peoples is part of God's design."

More than 1,300 people attended the Sept. 22 morning liturgy in the cathedral, concelebrated by the cardinal, Auxiliary Bishops Alexander Salazar, Gabino Zavala and Oscar Solis, and nearly 50 priests. More than 20 different ethnic communities were represented at the annual celebration, which dates back to the 1970s. A "Festival of Cultures" followed the Mass in the Los Angeles County Mall, across from the cathedral.

This year's theme was "Welcoming Christ in the Migrant." After local Native Americans blessed the congregation, Mayan liturgical dances led the entrance procession, which lasted almost 15 minutes. Groups entered the sanctuary from different parts of the cathedral, symbolizing their journey from separate continents.

Liturgical prayers were offered in several languages, including Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, German, Tagalog and French. The multi-ethnic choir was conducted by John Flaherty, director of liturgy and music at Loyola Marymount University.

Cardinal Mahony pointed out that people had been migrating on the earth since Adam and Eve, often because of threats and persecutions, or because they didn't have enough food, adequate education or healthcare. What puzzled him was so often the hostility towards new immigrants came from other older-arriving immigrants.

"Why are we so quick to slam the door behind us?" he asked. "And yet as we know, especially here in Southern California, how enriched we are, how wonderful it is to have all the gifts that people bring to us."

With their diversity and unity in that diversity, Catholics had a "special obligation" to show the community how to live together, the cardinal noted. And people in the Los Angeles Archdiocese's nearly 300 parishes should be proud to celebrate their racial and ethnic diversity.

"We need to model for people," he said. "So we don't need gated communities that separate every single group from some other group. No, we need wide open doors to our communities where all are welcome."

Moreover, Cardinal Mahony stressed that Catholics must "also be the voice, the outreach to today's immigrants, to tomorrow's immigrants and those 10 years from now and 20 years from now. That is one of the great contributions we can make to our community."

Roseline Amuchie, a native of Nigeria who belongs to St. Cecilia Church in Los Angeles, came to the Migration Mass to be in fellowship with her brothers and sisters from other ethnic communities and cultural backgrounds. She thought the cardinal's words were not only powerful but instructive.

"He challenges each one of us to go out to the communities and be role models of how heaven should be," said the 50-year-old woman after the liturgy. "It's not one particular race. It's not one particular group. It's diversity that pulls everybody together and makes all of us strong with our differences."

The main reason Joe Maleteal of Long Beach came to the Sunday morning liturgy was to find out more about different cultures. The 50-year-old man, who was born and raised in Samoa, also wanted to promote his own cultural background.

"Well, we're all different people, but we're only pleasing one God," he told The Tidings. "And that's why we're here - to praise him and thank him for all the good things that have been given to us."

Bishop Solis, the archdiocese's vicar for ethic ministries, called the Migration Mass an "awesome celebration." He said any time peoples of different cultures gather to signify their unity and solidarity around the table of the Lord, "it feels like you're in heaven already."

Then he added, "I think that is our mission, our calling to be one."