Just Released: The Pope's Schedule For September's Trip To Philadelphia
By Mark Abrams
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Vatican has just released the schedule of events for the visit of Pope Francis to the United States.
We've known for some time now that the pope will visit Washington D.C. and New York before coming here to Philadelphia the last full week of September. But now we know more about what he'll do when he gets here to the city on Saturday, September 26th.
He'll arrive Saturday morning at Philadelphia International Airport from New York.
A motorcade will take the pope to center city where he will celebrate a mass inside the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul.
That will be a ticketed event because the cathedral and an adjoining chapel combined hold only 1,600 people.
Auxiliary bishop John McIntyre (below) says they'll try to show off the diversity of the archdiocese.
"The church here in Philadelphia is made up of a variety of people from various ethnic and racial backgrounds. He'll see that," McIntyre said this morning.
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The pope will then take up residence at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, in Lower Merion.
On Saturday, about mid-afternoon, he'll head back into the city for an appearance on Independence Mall, where he's expected to give a major address on immigration and religious freedom outside Independence Hall.
Then, on Saturday evening, he'll take part in the Festival of Families celebration on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway as part of the closing of the World Meeting of Families event in Philadelphia.
On Sunday, he'll travel at mid-morning from the seminary to Curran-Fromhold Prison, on State Road in Northeast Philadelphia, where he will meet prisoners and their families.
The pope wraps up his day in Philadelphia with an open-air mass on the Ben Franklin Parkway, which organizers expect will draw well over a million people.
The pontiff will be wheels up from Philadelphia International Airport by Sunday evening, September 27th, capping an eight-day journey that actually starts with a visit to Cuba before he comes to the US.
While he's here, look for the popemobile to appear on a couple of main streets in center city, streets that will get a chance to feel the tires of the most recognizable vehicle in the world.
Mayor Nutter released a statement in response to the pope's announced schedule, saying:
"From visiting with inmates and their families at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility to appearances at some of Philadelphia's most important, recognizable landmarks like Independence Hall and the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, Pope Francis will touch the hearts and souls of millions when he visits the City of Philadelphia this September. With the Holy Father's itinerary now formalized, we will use this schedule to inform our planning, working closely with our partners at all levels of government, the World Meeting of Families and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The City of Philadelphia has a long history of hosting big events; we will be ready to welcome Pope Francis when he arrives."
