{"id":2208,"date":"2008-01-08T06:48:00","date_gmt":"2008-01-08T06:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2008\/01\/here-comes-the-pontiff.html"},"modified":"2008-01-08T06:48:00","modified_gmt":"2008-01-08T06:48:00","slug":"here-comes-the-pontiff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2008\/01\/here-comes-the-pontiff.html","title":{"rendered":"Here comes the pontiff"},"content":{"rendered":"

Details are trickling out about the papal trip to America this spring — and the Washington Post<\/a> has some intriguing behind-the-scenes nuggets about his visit to the nation’s capital:<\/p>\n

<\/a>Which position will the pope take up at Nationals Park? Second base or center field?<\/p>\n

Curious questions face organizers preparing for the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI, whose three-day visit to Washington in mid-April will allow few opportunities for the public to see him.<\/p>\n

From the White House to Catholic University to the new ballpark, the first papal visit to the District in 29 years will be tightly controlled and highly security-conscious. There will be no motorcades through the streets, with the pope standing and waving in a convertible, as Pope John Paul II did when he visited in 1979.<\/p>\n

“Post-9\/11 security concerns have changed that,” said Susan Gibbs, spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Washington, which is organizing the only public event here on Pope Benedict’s schedule: a Mass at the stadium at 10 a.m. April 17.<\/p>\n

Hence, the debate over where on the field the pope will celebrate Mass.<\/p>\n

With requests for thousands of tickets pouring into the offices of the archdiocese, officials are looking to squeeze as many people as possible into the stadium.<\/p>\n

At first, the decision was made to put the altar at second base, which is where Yankee Stadium officials place the altar for papal Masses, Nationals and archdiocese officials said.<\/p>\n

But after looking at plans for Nationals Park, which is under construction, organizers realized that they could fit in 4,000 more seats — for a total of 45,000 — if they placed the altar at center field, said Heather Westrom, the Nationals’ director of ballpark enterprises.<\/p>\n

And so, the pope will celebrate Mass from deep center field.<\/p>\n

The doors will open about 6:30 a.m. for pre-Mass activities, including music and videos. During the two-hour Mass, local Catholics will play a big role. Seminarians will be altar servers, and laypeople will be chosen to read Scripture. Music will be provided by Washington area parish choirs.<\/p>\n

Plans for distributing tickets have not been completed. In the past, tickets to major Catholic events have been distributed through parishes and Catholic organizations.<\/p>\n

The archdiocese has been asked whether non-Catholics can attend (yes) and whether the Mass is part of the Nationals baseball ticket package (no).<\/p>\n

The archdiocese is trying to keep the free tickets from popping up on eBay and falling into the hands of scalpers.<\/p>\n

The Mass “is for the faithful who want to be with the Holy Father,” Gibbs said. “It shouldn’t be an opportunity for people to make money.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Details are trickling out about the papal trip to America this spring — and the Washington Post has some intriguing behind-the-scenes nuggets about his visit to the nation’s capital: Which position will the pope take up at Nationals Park? Second base or center field? Curious questions face organizers preparing for the arrival of Pope Benedict…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":365,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-pope-and-bishops"],"yoast_head":"\nHere comes the pontiff - The Deacon's Bench<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2008\/01\/here-comes-the-pontiff.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Here comes the pontiff - The Deacon's Bench\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Details are trickling out about the papal trip to America this spring — and the Washington Post has some intriguing behind-the-scenes nuggets about his visit to the nation’s capital: Which position will the pope take up at Nationals Park? 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