Pope Benedict XVI landed in the United States on April 15 and 25 members of the St. Michael’s community, led by Joanne Nelson, of Edmundite Campus Ministry, traveled to New York City for his Mass at Yankee Stadium on April 20.
Seizing an opportunity
St. Michael’s students were granted the opportunity to go to New York to attend the Mass, says the Rev. Brian Cummings, director of Campus Ministry. Campus Ministry was able to acquire tickets for the students. Without the tickets, they would not have been able to attend, he says.
Students from the University of Vermont accompanied the St. Michael's group on the trip. Cummings was not able to attend because of a retreat he was directing in Connecticut, but still planned the entire trip, he says.
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Pope Benedict XVI arrives at Yankee Stadium in the Popemobile. (Photo courtesy of Chelsea Pescosolido) |
The group arrived Saturday evening and attended a 5 p.m. Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, sophomore Gabby Mailloux says.
“It was just so ornate and beautiful, it took your breath away when you walked in,” Mailloux says.
After Mass, the group spent a few hours touring the city, she says. They met many pleasant people willing to help them with directions and everyone seemed to be in a light, happy mood in anticipation of the pope coming to town.
The group stayed in a hotel outside the city in New Jersey, making for an easy subway trip to Manhattan the following morning. After arriving in Manhattan, the group took another train to the Bronx for Mass at Yankee Stadium, Cummings says.
“The trip was flawless,” Nelson says. “Everything came out smelling like roses.”
"X-V-I, you’re our guy"
About 50,000 anxious Catholics filed into Yankee Stadium on Saturday anticipating the arrival of the pope. Before he arrived, there was a concert that included performances from Harry Connick Jr. and Jose Feliciano, among others, Nelson says.
People came in carrying dove-like puppets on sticks. These dove puppets were manipulated so they appeared to move around like real doves, and then a flock of live doves was released, and they circled the stadium, she says.
“Around 2 p.m., everyone got all tingly and excited because they knew the pope was coming at any moment,” Nelson says.
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Pope Benedict XVI reading the sermon. |
When the pope arrived in his Popemobile, everyone was ecstatic, Nelson says. The crowd was cheering and shouting, “X-V-I, you’re our guy.”
“It’s a reverent kind of idea, this idea of the Eucharist and Mass certainly,” Nelson says. “But when it’s in the stadium and people were cheering uproariously, there’s something ridiculously funny about it at the same time.”
Pope Benedict’s time in New York was very well-received. People in the stands waved handkerchiefs in appreciation, sophomore Chelsea Pescosolido says. At one point during the Mass, it was completely silent and one man shouted out, “We love you, Benedict.” The pope simply looked up, smiled slightly, and went on with the prayer, Pescosolido says.
“He was just so cute to watch and he spoke English beautifully,” she says. “It kind of brought me to a whole new level of appreciation.”
The altar was set up at home plate and the group from St. Michael’s was located in the bleachers between second and third base behind the stage setup, Nelson says.
Although they were unable to see the pope, there were large TV screens set up, allowing everyone to see everything that was going on. The group of people with the best seats was part of the Archdiocese of Boston, Nelson says.
“There is a God,” she says. “There is justice in the world because in Yankee Stadium, the people who had the best seats are from Boston.”
There were about 500 priests at the Mass to help give communion to the 50,000 people in attendance, Pescosolido says. It took about 30 or 40 minutes for everyone to receive communion.
“We didn’t receive communion until after they finished mass,” she says.
Leaving with respect
People left New York after seeing the pope with a positive experience. In order to be a good pope, he must reveal and reflect a loving God, Nelson says. Pope Benedict is good at doing that, she says. The pope visited a home for young children with various disabilities. He blessed them, kissed them and touched their heads. It was a very powerful sight to see, Nelson says.
The pope had very positive things to say about America, Mailloux says. He spoke of people helping each other, which Mailloux feels is part of the mission of St. Michael’s.
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The back of the stage where the Vermont seats were located. (Photo courtesy of Chelsea Pescosolido) |
“I feel like that’s something that’s in our mission here to help other people, so it was really cool,” Mailloux says.
The pope’s trip was important to the 65 million Catholics living in the United States, Cumming says. The issues the pope addressed, especially the recent sex abuse scandal, were important and showed his support to the Church and to the faithful, he says.
Pescosolido, who had seen Pope John Paul II at World Youth Day, says that she has gained a new respect for Pope Benedict after seeing him.
“I didn’t get to meet him, I didn’t get to shake his hand or anything like that,” she says. “But I guess seeing his presence, how he acted and interacted with people, I think that’s what it was all about.”