As many as a million expected for pope’s last Mass in US

The pope was greeted by roaring crowds before heading to downtown Philadelphia to celebrate Mass and attend the Festival of Families Saturday night, hosted by actor Mark Wahlberg and featuring several entertainers including, comedian Jim Gaffigan, an Elgin native, as well as singing legend Aretha Franklin.

The pope’s talk centered on immigration and religious freedom outside Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776.

Francis made his remarks from the same lectern Abraham Lincoln used to give the Gettysburg Address, a fitting setting for a speech stressing freedom.

Criticising “various forms of modern tyranny” that “seek to suppress religious freedom… or to use religion as a pretext for hatred and brutality”, he urged those of all faiths to work together for “peace, tolerance and respect for the dignity and rights of others”.

“You should never be ashamed of your traditions”, Francis said to applause.

Pope Francis, who has been limping more and more as his USA trip goes on, has a hip ailment and gets physical therapy on a regular basis, the Vatican spokesman said Saturday.

“This pope brings for us hope”.

Alampi said she was excited “to be around people who all have the same goal to be good, strong Catholics”. “We feel proud, we feel happy”.

The 78-year-old Argentine pontiff landed in the City of Brotherly Love after a short flight from New York, where he spent a whirlwind 36 hours that included an emotional visit to Ground Zero and mass at Madison Square Garden.

Later, Frances celebrated Mass in the city at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, the largest brownstone structure in Philadelphia and the largest Catholic church in Pennsylvania.

He left followers with the repeated question “y tu?”

He reminded them that “you are called to be responsible citizens and contribute to the life of the communities where you live”.

A piece of Presidential history will be a part of the Pope’s visit to Philadelphia. “To me, in that moment, he must have felt that blessing”, said Kristin Keating, a fourth-grade teacher from Elverson.

During his trip to the Big Apple the last few days, Pope Francis made a stop at the United Nations.

“God did not want to come into the world other than through a family”, he said, referring to Jesus’ birth to Mary.

He further said: “Family is attractive, but there’s effort involved, and there are problems”. However, he wanted the singing group, Sister Sledge, to perform for him.

At the airport, a Catholic high school band played the theme song from the Philadelphia-set movie Rocky upon Francis’s arrival, and among those greeting him was Richard Bowes, a former Philadelphia police officer wounded in the line of duty.