THE Volume 92, Issue 5
Q
UADRANGLE A Student Publication of Manhattan College Since 1924
Sept. 29, 2015
www.mcquad.org
Pope Francis Comes to NYC
Sean Sonnemann/The Quadrangle
Central Park Procession Brings Crowds Anthony Capote Assistant Editor
A rainbow shone over Central Park on Sept. 25, as 100,000 people of all shapes, sizes, creeds and colors gathered to catch a glimpse of the people’s pope. Pope Francis, during his six-day, threecity tour of the United States, led a procession through Central Park after a visit to Our Lady Queen of Angels School in East Harlem for New Yorkers to get a chance to see him. The hordes of people that trudged slowly towards the 61st Street entrance to the park were quiet almost to a whisper, as if somehow they were listening to hear Pope Francis coming from the distance. As onlookers neared the security checkpoint, the whisper turned into low rumble of voices and then, in anticipation of the pope’s arrival on the scene, into a thunderous roar. “I’ve never seen so many people this excited,” Marco Gaspare, a Brooklyn native who also attended the pope’s service at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Sept. 24, said. “So much peace, so much love all around no matter who you are. That’s why all these people are here.” Gaspare, who now lives on Long Island, came to New York City to witness the historic papal visit. Pope Francis did not only draw a crowd of Catholics, but supporters from a myriad of religions. Sherri Starr, another Long Island resident, said she came with four of her friends despite being Jewish. “I heard on the radio that tickets were free and I thought it was a once in a lifetime opportunity,” she said. “I told everyone to apply and wound up with six tickets.” Pastor David Stancil, a Presbyterian minister at Resurrection Brooklyn Church at 334 S. Fifth St. in Williamsburg, also came to catch a passing glance of the
pope. “I thought it’s be a once in a lifetime chance,” he said. “I think he does a lot of good things to bring people closer to the person of Jesus.” Pope Francis’s leadership has become characterized by his concern for the poor, activism against climate change and aid for the ongoing migrant crisis in Europe. He is loved by many in the United States, both by young people, who see him as a refreshing voice of change in the Catholic Church and older generations who see him as a an embodiment of Catholic charity. Rosaria Critanielli, a native of Apullia, Italy who now lives in New York, said the pope’s dedication to the poor helps bring people back to the faith. “I am not very religious but this pope has an outstanding personality,” she said. “Something is changing, slowly but surely.” The Argentine pope also had no shortage of countrymen present in New York either. Countless Argentinian flags and Lionel Messi jerseys were visible throughout the crowd. However, the pope’s desire to be as accessible as possible made him a security nightmare for both his own personal security detail and the NYPD. “I am in the 40th [precinct] in the South Bronx and I finished a tour last night and came straight here,” Officer Llanos of the NYPD said. “I’ve been here since 3 a.m., but that’s just the nature of the beast, you know.” Llanos said he had seen papal pilgrims camping out in front of Central Park since 1 a.m. that morning and even provided some with food and water. “People don’t come prepared with enough snacks and water,” he said. “We just want to keep everyone safe while they are here.”
Pope Francis Celebrates Mass at Madison Square Garden To Cap Off New York Visit Sean Sonnemann Editor-in-Chief
Crowds packed Madison Square Garden last Friday night to see a rock star who has graced the cover of Rolling Stone magazine—a figure important enough to boot even Billy Joel from his regularly scheduled gig at the Garden. Like most global superstars, he goes by only one name: Francis. The first of 266 Vicars of Christ to choose the name Francis, the pope capped off his historic trip to New York City by continuing to spread the simple message that is at the core of Church teaching: caring for and loving one’s neighbor. In a homily delivered in Spanish in front of 20,000 of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics under his spiritual leadership, he spoke about the challenges of life in metropolises such as New York, where it can be all too easy to ignore those who live in the shadows. “They are the foreigners, the children who go without schooling, those deprived of medical insurance, the homeless, the forgotten elderly,” he said. “These people stand at the edges of our great avenues, in our streets, in deafening anonymity. They become part of an urban landscape which is more and more taken for granted, in our eyes, and especially in our hearts.” The theme of the city ran throughout his homily, fitting for a Mass at that served as the capstone for his whirlwind two-day visit of New York that brought him all the way from Ground Zero to Harlem.
Francis is the second pope to celebrate Mass at “The World’s Most Famous Arena” and arrived earlier than scheduled for the 6:30 p.m. service. As he made a lap of the Garden floor in a golf cart-like Popemobile, attendees snapped pictures and rushed forward for a closer glimpse. But like any rockstar’s performance, the pope’s Mass was preceded by an opening act that consisted of musicians and Broadway stars. Jennifer Hudson, Gloria Estefan and Harry Connick Jr., among others, sang classic hymns such as “Hallelujah” and “Ave Maria.” In between songs, the rosary was prayed in both English and Spanish, a nod to both the surging Hispanic population of the Church in New York City and the Argentine pope’s native tongue. At the same time, priests were stationed around the arena to hear confession from those in attendance. These prelimary proceedings were described by New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan as a “bit of anti-pasto” and “miniretreat” in a video that played before the ceremonies began. On a more practical level, however, it allowed time for people to make it through the heavy security that caused lines to form blocks away from entrances to the Garden. With no tickets available to the general public, most were given away by local parishes through lotteries or similar methods. A group of 40 Manhattan College students, faculty and administrators traveled down to the Mass, with both Catholics and non-Catholics among the mix.
Continued on pages 6 & 7