{UAH} Triumphant Pope Francis leaves for Rome

After celebrating a very historic Great Mass attended by one and half a million people in the

vast Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, the pope has now left for Rome after being seen

of at the airport by the US Vice President, Mr Joe Biden.

The day ( Sunday 27/09/2015) began by the Pontiff's visit to the big Curran-Fromhold prison in

Philadelphia where the prisoners donated him the official chair on which he sat during the Great Mass!

He easily mingled with the 71 prisoners ( 60 men and 11 women ) who had been selected to receive him

on behalf of the total 2800 inmates. The 71 lucky persons were surrounded by members of their family.

They all madly cheered the pope when he entered the hall. He saluted each one of them. In the end he had

this to say, " We all need to be cleansed, and I, for one, in the first place!" Then he expressed a sincere wish

to see that their detention helps them to get on the right path. And finally, he appealed to all to help the inmates

rejoin society.

Next stop was at the local seminary where he met victims of sexual abuse. They were very happy to meet the pope

and to talk to him so openly. In reply he said that God cried at those abuses to children, adding that the young must be

protected and that those responsible would have top account for it. And that the Church would struggle to put an end to

this danger and the guilty would be punished. [ Noises have pointed on the creation of a special court  at the Vatican to try those guilty ]

Again, passing through heavily packed streets, the Pope made a stop at a monument specially constructed by both the Catholic and

Jewish communities to commemorate reconciliation.

The next stop was at the very large Benjamin Franklin Parkway where the Pope arrived in strong acclamations all along the way.

This is where he celebrated the Great Mass that closed the week long Meeting of Families, a world gathering that had been going on in

Philadelphia. The crowds were estimated at 1,500,000 and many who couldn't reach the venue followed the events on the gigantic screens

erected all over the city. Other plucky ones climbed on trees ! Almost 1,000 buses rolled in carrying thousands of faithful. And an estimated

100,000 communion hosts had been baked for the Great Mass which was televised to over a billion televiewers all over the globe..

In his sermon the Pope dwelt on dwelt on four major themes : the family, the sharing of riches, ecology, and migration.

After Mass the Archbishop of Philadelphia thanked the Pope for the ceremony. He also thanked the organizers who included the laity,  priests,

the religious. The Prefect of the PontificalCommission for Families also extended his sincere appreciation to the Pope for concluding the

Meeting.  He observed that Jesus was really present on the spot where there was the beauty of the family. He further informed that 100 countries

had participated in the project.And that the pope had appointed the city of Dublin in Ireland to hold the next Meeting of Families in 2016.

And finally five couples were chosen to come on behalf of each continent to receive a Bible from the Pope. For Africa, a family from Kinshasa

was chosen. And finally the Pope blessed the vast assembly and Mass ended!

The last item on the day's agenda was the farewell ceremony at the airport. The Pope took the opportunity to thank all those who had been invoved

in the preparations. He further commended the excellent organization. He bade farewell to everyone present and manyu jostled to shake his hands!

US Vice President, Joe Biden, was present to see off the Pope on behalf of the USA authorities. From one of the terminals a long procession of vehicles

accompanied the pope to his plane, a Boeing 777 of the American Airlines, adorned with both the USA and Vatican flags. The pope went on board after formally bidding farewell to the Vice President. And finally the plane took off, and is scheduled to arrive in Rome by mid-day. It will officially be bringing back from the Americas a very popular Pope who has been listened to wherever he has been!

Dr G.H. Kkolokolo  ( Paris / France )