Paul KeenanAnticipation is building for the papal trip, writes Paul Keenan
Ten thousand tickets sold in 30 seconds; think about that for a moment. Even allowing for the modern wonder that is the internet, the snapping up of 10,000 tickets by faithful Americans eager to be close to Pope Francis as he celebrates Mass on Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia this September 27 is a breath-taking occurrence.
In an era when people dive hungrily upon tickets for the biggest rock bands – but not Popes! – even the grandest of celebrities can only boast mammoth ticket sales in ‘the minutes’ via the internet. This, by the way, was an achievement equalled by Pope Francis just one day before the 30-second frenzy when another batch of 10,000 tickets, for his outdoor address at Philadelphia’s Independence Mall took just two minutes to be snapped up. In another parallel to modern celebrity, Pope Francis will also fill out New York’s Madison Square Garden on September 25, a venue more used to the followers of popstars than Popes.
Launching into a discussion of a ‘Francis factor’ to account for the magnetic draw clearly exercised by this Pontiff is moot for any who have followed a papacy so far marked by a dynamism that has impressed (and challenged) world leaders.
Joint session
It cannot be mere coincidence that it is Pope Francis who will be the first in history to address a joint session of the US Congress on September 24; an address taking place during the administration of a US President whose ideology and policies are hardly in tune with those of the Church – as the Pope steps up to speak, America will still be a nation struggling with the new reality of same-sex marriage, the foetal body parts scandal of Planned Parenthood and Obama’s healthcare mandate so at odds with the ethos of Christian organisations and businesses.
Of course, Catholics are not confined to a narrow band of ethical concerns, and there is little doubt that, in addition to ‘gentle’ swipes at these during his visit to Congress and elsewhere, Pope Francis will broaden his speeches to include more recent issues of concern, from climate change to the limits and darker sides to globalisation.
Yet even this extended list is limiting for Pope Francis, a Pontiff whose warm welcome to America, and Cuba beforehand, will be based on a crowning achievement in the region.
As he lands in Havana this September 19, the Pope arrives in a country on a sound footing towards normalised relations with its old foe, the US. The Irish Catholic has, in recent weeks, reported on this shift in international relations and, crucially, the Pontiff’s ‘quiet hand’ in prompting and nurturing negotiations between the Obama and Castro administrations towards last December’s historic announcement of renewed relations.
It would be wrong, of course, to suggest that the understated and humble Jorge Bergoglio, even as Supreme Pontiff, will bask in the glory of this achievement as he receives the adulation of the Cuban people, but he will not be able to avoid such an outpouring based on what he has made possible for them as his popemobile travels the capital’s streets. (The Centre for American Progress has described Pope Francis as simultaneously “humble and prophetic”.)
An illustration of his impact on Cubans is contained in reports stateside in recent days charting the excited preparations by Cuban ex-pats who, while living closer to the Pope’s intended stopovers in New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC, intend to travel to Cuba to add to the throngs there. Commentators may use phrases such as ‘pilgrimage’ to sum up these journeys, but they fall far short of elucidating the overall nature of the compunction Cubans feel to travel in time for Pope Francis.
All of this aside, media commentators now, in these last few days ahead of the visits, are engaged in a fevered guessing game of ‘what else’ the Pope will bring to his trip.
The issue of families is a given, of course, both from the mammoth Philadelphia gathering for the World Meeting for Families from September 22-25, but there are other intriguing matters also.
When he arrives in Cuba, for example, will the Pontiff meet with the ‘other’ Castro brother, the now infrequently glimpsed Fidel Castro? Raúl is not an issue, that Jesuit-educated leader already so grateful to the Pontiff in the public arena that he proclaimed his temptation to return to his Catholic faith.
But the firebrand Fidel, what words might pass between him and a fellow Latin American who took an entirely different path to world influence? (Fidel, now 89, met both of Pope Francis’ immediate predecessors and Vatican rumour hints strongly at a last-minute announcement on this trip.)
One meeting that will not take place, due to time constraints, but one worth pointing towards nonetheless is the papal audience requested by representatives of the Colombian guerrilla group, FARC. Present in Havana – as a neutral venue – for peace talks with the Colombian government, the FARC negotiators are reportedly eager to appeal in person to the Pope for him to appoint a permanent delegate, an honest broker, who can use all of the Church’s expertise and experience in steering the sides towards a lasting peace.
The Pope has indicated his willingness to host such a meeting when time allows.
Flash forward to New York, and Pope Francis’ September 25 visit to the United Nations in New York. Hardly contentious, with a fairly safe prediction being that of the Pope’s renewed appeal on behalf of refugees – and those Syrians now comprising 1 in 5 of all refugees worldwide. But this is not the only issue presented.
As well as a one-to-one visit with UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, it is also customary for a visiting Pope to meet with the leader whose country holds the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council. Right now that duty falls to Russia, offering a short period in which Pope Francis will exchange pleasantries with President Vladimir Putin. For a Pontiff who is renowned for going ‘off script’, what words might pass when this opportunity is presented?
It would not be in keeping with the figure of Pope Francis, however, if he confined himself to power brokers. Indeed, many of his most powerful moments have originated elsewhere, and it is a safe bet that media outlets will find much to make of his September 27 visit to the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia, home to some 2,800 inmates, some of whom, along with their families, will be afforded the opportunity to meet the Pope.
Journalists may vie for a spot with the luminaries of Havana or the UN, but one suspects that a mingling with inmates and the ordinary people of Cuba will be the key to illuminating the Francis factor at work.