When Pope Francis came to town

Pope Francis spoke at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Sept. 24. (Courtesy Jo Ann Brennan)

Courtesy Jo Ann Brennan

Bishop William Murphy, leader of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, spoke at the pope’s vespers at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Courtesy Jo Ann Brennan

The Pope entered Madison Square Garden to the cheers of thousands of Catholics who gathered to hear him perform Mass.

Courtesy Jo Ann Brennan

Jo Ann and Jim Brennan were able to attend the Mass at Madison Square Garden. Jo Ann was also at the pope’s vespers the day before.

Courtesy Jo Ann Brennan

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Some lucky Rockville Centre residents got the opportunity to see Pope Francis during his brief visit to New York last week.

Two students and two staff members from Molloy College won tickets to the pontiff’s Mass at Madison Square Garden last Friday, and another student was able to see his procession through Central Park.

“It was amazing. It was very moving,” said Molloy student Lucia Agosti, who is from Argentina, like Pope Francis. “I am fortunate enough to be bilingual, so I didn’t need the translations they were giving. So I was able to listen to the pope’s homily with the true essence of what he was saying.”

Agosti said that the Mass was similar to a regular Mass, but that it was given in three different languages: it started in English, moved to Spanish during the popes homily and ended in Latin.

“It took a moment for me to realize that I was actually listening to the pope speak in person,” Agosti said. “But I liked what he had to say.”

Village residents Jo Ann and Jim Brennan were also at the pope’s Mass, as well as his vespers at St. Patrick’s Cathedral the day before.

Joseph D’Aleo was able to meet the pontiff and shake his hand in Philadelphia, the last stop in the pope’s trip to the United States.

“It was an amazing experience, and I’m really grateful for the opportunity,” said Agosti. “As an Argentinean and an American, it was amazing to hear him speak.”