The Pope In NYC

So, last weekend the Pope was back in the U.S. for the first time since the 9/11 tragedy (which was during the reign of Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI is the current Pope) . Being the faithful Catholics we are - haha - we headed to 5th Avenue to see the PopeMobile head up from St. Patrick's past Central Park to the place he was staying in the city. The Pope had more security this time around than any president has ever had - I've never seen so many Police escorts, officers, barricades, etc. all in one play - it was crazy. Streets were closed between 6th and 5th Ave and 5th and Madison all the way from 50th up to Central Park - it was a nightmare trying to get across just to get to the swarms of people, hoping to get a glimpse of the Pope as he drove by. There must have been hundreds of thousands of people out there - it was amazing to see so many different races, ethnic groups, countries, religions, etc. represented... It didn't matter whether you were a Catholic, Baptist, Jew, Protestant - it was a diverse crowd where everyone was welcome and knew they were there to see the most influencial religious man walking the earth. It was truly amazing and as with my journey to become a Catholic, continued to keep me thinking of religion in a different way, keeping me open minded - beliefs differ drastically from one religion to another but it seems those who believe in Jesus Christ and the cross and the life of the world to come - all of those people see the holiness and faithfulness that the Pope represents. It was a unique experience - here are some pictures to share as much of it as possible.