Pope’s Schedule for Visit Released
The beginning of July brings us just a bit closer to Pope Francis’ September visit – and yesterday brought us news of the pontiff’s official schedule for his stop in Philadelphia. The pope will visit New York and Washington D.C. before spending time in Philly.
The pope’s schedule has been released. (Flickr: Catholic Church England)Saturday, September 26th will see the pope arrive at Philadelphia International Airport from New York City. Right from there he will take a motorcade to Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, where he will celebrate mass for a ticketed crowd of around 1,600. Auxiliary bishop John McIntyre said that the church will try to impress upon the pope the tremendous diversity for which the city is known. Afterwards, the pontiff will settle in at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, in Lower Merion, where he will be staying for the weekend.
Saturday afternoon will see him giving a speech on immigration and religious freedom outside Independence Hall. Saturday evening, he will participate in the Festival of Families celebration on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the event that is the closing of the World Meeting of Families event in Philadelphia. On Sunday morning he will travel to Curran-Fromhold Prison, on State Road in Northeast Philadelphia, where he will meet with prisoners and their loved ones. Possibly the biggest event of the visit will take place Sunday evening, when the pope will hold an open-air mass on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway that is expected to draw over a million people. He will leave town on Sunday night.
It’s expected that the pope will be seen out and about in the famed “Popemobile” on the streets of Center City over the weekend.
