'His Holiness' Moves America And The World

“His Holiness.”

In my opinion, no pope in my lifetime has worn that title as well – or deserved it as much – as Pope Francis. I was blessed to experience that first-hand throughout his stop in Washington, D.C., during the historic papal visit to Cuba and America.

Months ago, the media staff of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops emailed me and my counterparts in North America requesting assistance in one or more of the three cities the Holy Father visited. By the time I arrived in our nation’s capitol on Sept. 20, more than 7,600 media credentials had been approved for journalists from more than 260 countries.

I spent three days in the USCCB Credential Room – confirming that people who arrived to pick up credentials actually had been approved, troubleshooting any issues that arose and, when necessary, saying no and sticking to it. I worked an additional day in the Washington Media Filing Center, where I had hung out earlier in the week when I wasn’t on duty in the Credential Room.

By the end of my first day, I had personally interacted with journalists from every continent except Antarctica. Pope Francis has succeeded in making our ever-shrinking world even smaller through his ability to engage people across our planet.

Back to the top – why do I say what I have about “His Holiness?” The former Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio truly is a holy man. You see it in his eyes, his smile, his sincerity and his joy at being with God’s people at every opportunity.

Maybe the most significant evidence of his true holiness is his ability to move people who gather in crowds that number in the 10s or hundreds of thousands – as he did every time he appeared before the large crowds that turned out for him in D.C., New York City and Philadelphia. That shouldn’t have surprised me; the Holy Father does that regularly when he appears on the balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

I didn’t fully appreciate it – and its true meaning – until I sat in the Media Filing Center with members of the VAMP (the traveling press corps that occupies the rear of the papal plane on the pope’s trips) for his address to Congress. Speaker of the House John Boehner wasn’t the only one in tears. Journalists who cover him every day teared up in that room; I joined them.

I never got within two miles of Pope Francis during his time in D.C., and I did not volunteer to assist with his stops in New York and Philadelphia – although I should have. What fascinates me to this moment is the unmistakable feeling of his presence I had from the time he touched down at Joint Base Andrews until “Shepherd 1” lifted off to carry him and the VAMP to New York City and beyond.

Thank you, Holy Father, for sharing your holiness with America and the world.