Crowds gather to watch Pope Francis celebrate Mass at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia on Sept. 27, 2015.(Photo: Suchat Pederson, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal)
PHILADELPHIA — For 11 hours Saturday, Karen Sheedy stood at the corner of Arch and Broad streets downtown, her arms pointed toward a checkpoint, shouting, "Security this way." Her feet ached, but the volunteer for the World Meeting of Families turned her mind to Sunday and her precious ticket to Pope Francis' outdoor Mass at the center of the city. "I thought, 'I'm going to see the pope!,'" she said.
Sunday after chanting 9 a.m. Mass as the cantor at her parish in Ambler, Pa., Sheedy hustled down to Center City Philadelphia only to find herself squashed in the mass of humanity pushing futilely toward the parkway where the pope would celebrate Mass. With security lines at a standstill, Sheedy realized she'd be worshiping before one of the Jumbotrons erected around the city for the thousands of faithful who would find themselves squeezed out of the venue.
"It's OK. We're still here in Philly. The pope is still here. Except for this frustration, everyone's so happy he's here," she said. "I mean, look at all the people who are lined up just to get a glimpse of him. It's all good."
As Pope Francis celebrated his final and most public Mass Sunday, hundreds of thousands of people, some arriving before dawn, packed the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia's grand avenue that stretches from City Hall to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Those worshipers who couldn't get through clogged security lines into the park, scattered around the downtown to watch the Mass on 40 Jumbotrons.
Cheers filled the city as the pontiff in his modified Jeep Wrangler popemobile drove down the boulevard toward the park. One spectator, a baby girl dressed in a pope costume, drew chuckles from the pontiff when a security officer brought her over to the pope for a kiss.
The Mass capped the final day of the pontiff's historic visit to the United States. On Sunday, the pope met with victims of sexual abuse by priests, one of the toughest issues facing the Roman Catholid Church, and pledged to "zealously" protect youth. He also visited a prison, where he addressed the prisoners as brothers.
When the first strains of the musical preludes wafted over the city streets, the boisterous crowds went suddenly silent. The worshipers, connected to the Mass only by the Jumbotron broadcast, bowed their heads, clasped their hands in prayer and joined in the chants and prayers.
The pope's homily, delivered in Spanish, spoke of the home and family as the "domestic church" where small gestures of love help cultivate faith, and how those small gestures could serve to create a better, more loving world.
Pope Francis holds Mass to conclude the World Meeting of Families along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia on Sept. 27, 2015. (Photo: Jack Gruber, USA TODAY)
"Like happiness, holiness is always tied to little gestures," he said. "These little gestures are those we learn at home, in the family. They get lost amid all the other things we do, yet they do make each day different. They are the quiet things done by mothers and grandmothers, by fathers and grandfathers, by children. They are little signs of tenderness, affection and compassion. Like the warm supper we look forward to at night, the early lunch awaiting someone who gets up early to go to work."
He invoked his most recent encyclical when he asked the assembly, "What kind of world do we want to leave our children?"
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"Our common house can no longer tolerate sterile divisions," he said. "The urgent challenge of protecting our home includes the effort to bring the entire human family together in the pursuit of a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change."
He called the gathering "something prophetic, a kind of miracle in today’s world. Would that we could all be prophets! Would that all of us could be open to miracles of love for the sake of all the families of the world."
The homily met with thunderous applause.
"It was wonderful," said Patricia Searles-Horton, a nurse from Philadelphia who also went to Independence Mall to hear the pontiff speak. "It's like he's everyone's father, looking out for us. And he's only speaking the truth, that we should do everything we can to keep our families together."
Amanda Trahan, a special education teacher from Welsh, La., traveled 28 hours on a bus with her mother, daughter and boyfriend and 44 others from Holy Rosary Catholic Church to be in Philadelphia with the pope. On Sunday, she watched the Mass on a Jumbotron outside City Hall under an overcast sky with rain threatening.
"Of course, we could have watched it on TV, but this was special, awesome — to have the solidarity of everyone coming together, praying together from all over the country and all over the world, and sharing their faith and love of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior," Trahan said. "I thought the homily was beautiful. It made me cry."
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Pope Encourages Rehabilitation for Prisoners
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Pope Talks Social Media, Culture of Loneliness
Pope Pushes Stronger Familial Bond with Church
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Pope Vows to Combat Sexual Abuse of Youth
Pope gives message of love, laughter to families
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Pope Arrives at World Meeting of Families
Pope Francis tells immigrants to not be discouraged, ashamed
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Pope Celebrates Religious Freedom, Immigrants
Crowds Greet Pope at Independence Hall
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Faithful Flock Outside Philly Cathedral for Pope
Pope Francis Serenaded By Seminarians
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Pope Francis holds mass in Philadelphia
Pope Celebrates Mass In Philadelphia
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Pope Francis stops Fiat to bless disabled boy
Pope Francis Arrives in Philadelphia
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Pope: Church's Future Depends On Laity, Women
Pope Francis outlines his 3 minimum rights of life
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Pope: Harm to environment is harm to humanity
Kids serenade Pope 'for peace' during UN visit
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Pope Francis at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City
Spectators at the Capitol watch Pope Francis
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Pope Francis arrives at St. Patrick's Cathedral
Pope Departs Andrews Air Force Base for New York
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Pope Francis Makes History, Wraps Up DC Visit
Pope Francis hugs and kisses Americans
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Sights and sounds of Pope Francis on Capitol Hill
Pope praises Dorothy Day, but who is she?
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Pope Francis Delivers Historic Speech to Congress
Pope Francis: We should follow great Americans' example
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Pope Arrives At St. Patrick's Catholic Church
Pope Francis to Homeless: 'Prayer Unites Us'
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Pope Visits Father Serra Statue, Speaks to Crowd
Crowds Rejoice Pope's Address to Congress
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Family Travels 13,000 Miles to See Pope in Pa.
Pope Francis: Worst refugee crisis since World War II
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Pope Calls for Abolition of Death Penalty
Pope Francis: America continues to be a land of dreams
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Pope: Thomas Merton remains a spiritual inspiration
Pope Arrives at Capitol for Historic Speech
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Pope Francis Concludes First Mass in the US
Little Girl Shares Immigration Message with Pope
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Pope Francis Tackles Issues, Embraces Crowds
Pope Francis Celebrates First U.S. Mass
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Pope Francis Canonizes Missionary Junipero Serra
If you could, what would you ask Pope Francis?
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Martin O'Malley on Pope and Democrats
Pope Francis charms D.C. parade crowd
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DC Crowds Cheer, Pope Calls for Climate Action
Thousands gather for historic Pope Francis visit
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Trying for a glimpse of Pope Francis
Raw: Huge Crowd Greets Pope Francis Before Mass
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Pope Francis Speaks on Behalf of Immigrants
Pope Francis Returns to D.C. Residence
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Raw: Girl Passes Barricade, Greets Pope Francis
Thousands Pack Pope Parade Route in Washington
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Pope Francis stops D.C. parade to kiss baby
Pope held sick baby, and what happened next is amazing
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Obama Meets Pope Francis In Oval Office
Obama Welcomes Pope Francis to White House
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Pope Calls For Action on Climate Change
Pope Frances Heads to White House
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Pope finds Obama's climate change agenda 'encouraging'
Pope Greets Crowd Before White House Visit
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Pope Francis kicks off trip to U.S.
Pope Francis makes his way into D.C. in Fiat
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Pope Francis Arrives at Vatican Embassy
Pope Francis greeted by Obama family after landing
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Pope Francis Lands in US, Starts DC Visit
Pope Francis Departs Cuba for U.S.
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Twitter creates special Pope Francis emojis
See the weirdest Pope memorabilia you can buy
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Navy ship bunks made available to papal pilgrims
Priest inspired by Pope John Paul II knows power of papal visit
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The Pope is coming to America, and it's really expensive
Lutheran mayor has no idea why he gets to see Pope Francis
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Get a sneak peek of Pope Francis' first visit to U.S.
The Pope and Presidents, a history of meetings
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These kindergartners may know more about the Pope than you
The Pope is visiting this historic Philadelphia church
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Pope Francis will visit these 4 U.S. churches
Congress Prepares to Welcome Pope Francis
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Pope Francis: 'See you in Philadelphia.'
Pope Francis to visit Catholic Charities' clients
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Pope visiting historic Catholic church in D.C.
Pope visiting largest Catholic church in North America
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Congress Prepares to Welcome Pope Francis
Pope visiting St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC
Just being in the same city as the pope filled Trahan "with joy in the Holy Spirit. You can feel the Holy Spirit all around you."
Following communion, the pope offered a blessing. Many in the crowd held up rosaries and pictures of saints to have the objects blessed.
Pope Francis ended the Mass as he had done on previous days with a request that the faithful pray for him. "Don't forget," he added, prompting laughter from the crowd.
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