JULY 26, 2015, 11:33 PM LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, JULY 26, 2015, 11:36 PM
BY JEFF GREEN AND MONSY ALVARADO
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
They’ll be sleeping on the ground among bugs and birds, near lions and tigers, but the parishioners of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Ridgewood decided they’d do it if that’s what it took to see Pope Francis.
With hotel room prices shooting sky-high as far back as a year ago, Cathy Hunt, the church’s director of religious education, sought out, in Francis fashion, humbler lodging. After a little negotiating with the Philadelphia Zoo, the group cemented plans to roll out sleeping bags inside two buildings that contain the insect and bird exhibits.
More than 60 families of Our Lady of Mount Carmel are signed up for the church’s late-September pilgrimage to the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia — the capstone of Pope Francis’ five-day visit to the U.S., his first as pope.
Parishioners expect to walk several miles back and forth between the zoo and the festival site, but at $120 per person, including transportation, it’s a bargain as reservations get tougher to come by with only two months to go before the festival.
At least two other Bergen County congregations also made plans well ahead of time to travel to Philadelphia, where North Jersey Catholics may have their best opportunity to see the pope and hear him speak. Besides Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., the pope is visiting Manhattan, where he is to say Mass at Madison Square Garden and lead a multi-faith service at Ground Zero. But the Archdiocese of New York announced last week that its limited tickets for those events will be available only to its own parishioners.
Saw this on the news tonite…. what a wonderful thing to do… and I’m sure the Pontiff will reach out too…
I hope the insects and birds are behind glass or they will not be able to enjoy the mass very much when they wake up covered in bites and bird droppings.