Pope Francis’ trip to the Philippines last week will go down in the history books as having hosted the largest papal gathering in history when more than six million people gathered for Mass on Sunday.
ABS-CBNNews.com is reporting that record crowds turned out for the closing Mass of the Pope’s five day visit to the country, with more than three million packing into Manilla’s Luneta Park for the service and another three to four million cramming the surrounding streets.
This was in spite of battering winds and rain accompanying the landfall of Typhoon Mekkhala which caused him to cut short his visit to Tacloban on Saturday.
“We have seen so many people that we believe it is possible that this is the largest event of the history of the Pope,” said Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi in a press conference Sunday night. “It was a wonderful celebration. I have to say it was very well prepared and the music was wonderful.”
The Holy Father began his homily by telling the crowd what a special joy it was for him to be able to celebrate Santo Nino Sunday with them. A cherished feast day in the Philippines, it commemorates a miraculous statue of the Christ Child, housed in the Santo Nino chapel of the Basilica Minore del Santo Nino de Cebu.
“The image of the Holy Child Jesus accompanied the spread of the Gospel in this country from the beginning,” the pope said. “Dressed in the robes of a king, crowned and holding the scepter, the globe and the cross, he continues to remind us of the link between God’s Kingdom and the mystery of spiritual childhood. . . . The Santo Nino also reminds us of our call to spread the reign of Christ throughout the world.”
He continued: “In these days, throughout my visit, I have listened to you sing the song: ‘We are all God’s children’. That is what the Santo Nino tells us. He reminds us of our deepest identity. All of us are God’s children, members of God’s family. Today St. Paul has told us that in Christ we have become God’s adopted children, brothers and sisters in Christ. This is who we are. This is our identity.”
Santo Nino de Cebu
He went on to warn the people of the various ways the devil tries to obscure this image.
“Often he hides his snares behind the appearance of sophistication, the allure of being ‘modern’, ‘like everyone else’. He distracts us with the promise of ephemeral pleasures, superficial pastimes. And so we squander our God-given gifts by tinkering with gadgets; we squander our money on gambling and drink; we turn in on ourselves. We forget to remain focused on the things that really matter. We forget to remain, at heart, children of God. That is sin: to forget, in one’s heart, to be children of God. For children, as the Lord tells us, have their own wisdom, which is not the wisdom of the world. That is why the message of the Santo Nino is so important. He speaks powerfully to all of us. He reminds us of our deepest identity, of what we are called to be as God’s family.”
He concluded by asking the people, “Please don’t forget to pray for me! God bless you all!”
During the course of the event, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle said the Pope was overwhelmed by the sheer number of people who attended.
“He was mesmerized. He kept asking, ‘How many people are here?’” Tagle said. “He said, ‘I cannot fathom the faith of simple people.’ It’s really not about him, he was very attentive and he has this capacity to marvel and be touched by the faith of the people.”
He was also touched by a terrible tragedy that occurred the day before in Tacloban when a 27 year-old woman was killed when scaffolding collapsed during the papal Mass. Kristel Padasas worked for Catholic Relief Services and was volunteering at the event when winds from an approaching storm caused part of the stage scaffolding to collapse upon her.
Pope Francis later met with the woman’s father for 20 minutes. The man was still in shock over his daughter’s death but was consoled by the fact that she had been able to help prepare for the Pope’s visit.
During prayer with young people on Sunday morning, the pope led a prayer for Kristel and her family.
“The way that the Pope has been received has been marvelous and extraordinary,” Father Lombardi said. “The Pope was very touched, and the numbers were incredible, and in a sense the entire nation was here around the Pope. The Pope has appreciated this very, very much.”
The Pope’s visit to Sri Lanka and the Philippines ended today.
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