 | | | Pope Benedict XVI greets the crowd during a rally for seminarians and young people at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y., April 19. (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz) (April 20, 2008) | |
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A Catholic Digest Papal Visit Exclusive
8:00 a.m.: The hotel lobby outside the media center is already crowded with people when I arrive. Cameramen loiter beside tripods and equipment bags. Reporters filter in and out of the media center, which is filled with long tables and a few screens that will offer live feeds from the morning’s Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We’re ready. We’re waiting.
10:30: We’re still waiting. Finally, those of us remaining are separated into groups and called forward to be swept by the U.S. Secret Service. We’re ushered through metal detectors. It’s like being at the airport only we get to keep our shoes on. As an added bonus we’re eyed by a drug/bomb-sniffing dog.
11:39: Finally on our way. The bus drives down 57th Street with relative ease thanks to our police escort, which, while not quite making up for the chaos of the morning, is pretty cool.
11:45: As the bus crosses 5th Avenue we catch a glimpse of the crowds waving tiny Vatican flags and lining the street by St. Patrick’s.
12:39 p.m.: The trees lining the streets of Yonkers leading to St. Joseph Seminary are tied with yellow ribbons. We stop near the entrance and, after sitting on an idling bus for several minutes, we’re told we can join the crowds flocking toward the gate — a giant metal structure decorated in purple and yellow and emblazoned with the papal seal.
1:15: A rock group called Toby Mac is screaming lyrics involving the phrase “Jesus freak” — but in a good way. There's a lively energy about the place. Thousands of young adults spread out across a lawn in front of a huge stage. Lights flash around an oversized image of the risen Christ. Bandannas of gold and white — the papal colors — have been passed out to the youth. A man passes by me wearing the white bandana on his head folded in such a way that it stands up like a miter.
1:25: We’re told that we have until 3:30 to explore the grounds before reporting back to the media corral. If we don’t return we face being escorted off the premises by Secret Service. How they plan to find us in a crowd of 30,000 people I’m not sure. I wander past white tents selling, among other items, hot chocolate, burritos, pizza, and official papal visit merchandise. Sadly, there is no sign of an official papal burrito.
1:27: Toby Mac finishes their set announcing, “We are one body. The body of Christ — we are the family of God” and then launching into a rollicking version of “We Are Family.”
1:35: Emcee Mo Rocca comes out on stage and offers a shout out to “the original men in black” as well as the Sisters present and then specifically to the Mother Superiors. A thin nun in a grey habit covered by a red jacket and a red baseball cap over her veil cheers and jumps in a circle.
1:45: Ray Mungo, 34, and Tom Killin, 17, of Holy Trinity Parish in Wallingford, Connecticut, are sitting in the crowded dusty field playing cards with members of their parish youth group. Why have they come? “To see the pope,” says Mungo. “What more motivation do you need?”
“I’ve never been to something this big,” says Killen as he throws down a 7 of diamonds. Their group sports matching white baseball caps bearing the papal coal of arms. On the back they read: “got faith?” Jose Robles, 42, also of Holy Trinity is standing with his eyes on the stage but turns to look at the crowd as he says, “To see the light coming from them is great. The pope pulls the young people together.”
1:57: More call-and-answer shout outs:
Emcee: Holy...
Crowd: Father!
E: Supreme...
C: Pontiff!
E: Kelly...
C: Clarkson!
The singer isn’t scheduled to come on stage until 3:15, but the crowd is already excited.
