Energetic crowd for pope top memories for Sioux City pilgrims

By KARA KOCZUR, Globe staff reporter
April 24, 2008

She thought a lot of people attended University of Iowa football games, but that was nothing compared to the number of people Sonja Wyant saw gathered to see Pope Benedict XVI April 20 at Yankee Stadium.

"That many people!" said Wyant, 49, in disbelief. "My favorite part of the day was seeing that many people and the respect and admiration for the pope [they had] when he drove around."

Wyant and her husband Tom, of Mapleton, were among the nearly 60,000 gathered in the stadium for Mass with the Holy Father. Eleven others who were either from the Diocese of Sioux City or who had connections with the diocese were also among the tens of thousands.

It was the first time seeing the pope for Wyant, who said words can't describe what she felt.

"It was just awe," she said. "The presence of the Holy Spirit just gave me goose bumps. It's really hard to explain, you're just in awe and I felt peace inside."

Marilyn Baker, 40, and her 16-year-old daughter Amber also spent the weekend in New York and attended the papal Mass. Baker, who works for the diocese, was also struck by the size of the crowd.

"It was absolutely beautiful, to be not only in his presence, but in the presence of so many faithful people all with that same enthusiasm and excitement that I felt," said Baker, her eyes still shining two days after the Mass. "That many people for one person-it was awesome."

Baker and her daughter took the subway and bus to arrive at the stadium at 9:15 a.m., "good and early" she said. The Mass didn't begin until 2:30 p.m., but a concert began at noon. The two sat with the other members of the diocese who had made the pilgrimage.

The group sat at the "top of the rafters," according to Baker. They couldn't get any higher than that, she laughed. But the group had a perfect view of the altar and Benedict's chair.

"I don't think there was a bad seat in the house that day," she pointed out.

Although there were thousands of people between her and the Vicar of Christ, Baker said she was still able to feel united with him, though she wonders how he did it.

"I think it was just the energy, his, but [also] each individual person in every single seat," Baker said of his ability to connect with people. "We're all in this huge arena together sharing joy for this one person who represents Christ to us."

It was impossible not to feel the pope's presence, she added.

"I don't know how you could not feel connected," Baker said. "You could have been outside of the arena, and there were people there watching on monitors, and they too felt so connected and so excited to be there."

On Friday night, as Baker and her daughter walked out of Central Park, they came upon a cheering crowd and realized they had just missed the pope drive by. The two waited for hours with the crowd, hoping the pope would pass again. Eventually they decided to move on, but only made it to the other side of the block, where they came across a group of singing girls. Word began to spread that they were outside the papal nuncio's residence, and that the pope would be retiring there for the night.

"Then they passed out candles and we were lining both sides of the streets, as close as we could get because the main street was blocked off," said Baker, recalling the vigil more than 1,000 were reported to have attended. "And we just held our candles and sang religious songs."

Two other members of the diocese to make the trip to New York were parishioners from St. Mary's in Danbury, Mike and Anita Gaspers. Instead of getting tickets through the diocese, however, Mike, a parishioner at St. Mary's in Danbury was able to attend through the Knights of Columbus, of which he is the state deputy for the Iowa jurisdiction.

Mike and his wife had prime seats for the Mass: directly behind home plate and seven to eight rows behind the papal choir. The seats gave them a direct view of the altar, located over second base.

Around 2:20 p.m., Mike said the crowd began to notice that the pope would be arriving soon.

"Immediately the white and yellow kerchiefs were in hand and waving as the crowd began shouting 'Viva papa!' and 'We want Benedict!'" he said.

As the popemobile entered the stadium and began its trek around the field, the crowd's shouting and cheering intensified as they caught their first glimpse of the pontiff, he added. The crowd was cheering as if the pope were a "celebrity rock star." It was an emotional moment for Mike.

"At once I felt joy welling up within me and my eyes watered," he said. "Wow, what an experience to be there and [be] swept up with everyone else!"

That joy, Gaspers continued, was felt by everyone, even Pope Benedict.

"I was so impressed with the absolute joy Benedict seemed to take in the response from all of us," he said. "It was like we were feeding him our energy and he in turn was reflecting it back to us, magnified."

Shuffling through 200 pictures she took on the trip, Cindy Tiedeman, 52, still can't get over all the joyful people both in Yankee Stadium and those who lined the streets throughout the weekend, hoping to see the pope as he passed by. The excitement in the city was palpable.

"People who were in the elevator of our hotel, people who were not Catholic, were all jubilant [and] thrilled that the pope was coming to America," Tiedeman said. "The whole town was abuzz. It was just electric."

Tiedeman and her husband Tom first saw the pope Saturday morning as they waited along Fifth Avenue for Pope Benedict to pass on his way to St. Patrick's Cathedral for Mass.

As they stood waiting for three hours, they prayed the rosary and exchanged stories with those around them about their dioceses.

"We just couldn't believe how many young priests and young sisters-hundreds, lining the streets, unable to get into St. Patrick's Cathedral to see the Holy Father," said Tiedeman, who added that she and her husband are very grateful to the diocese for the chance to see the Holy Father.

Tiedeman, who is the bishop's secretary, believes the pope's visit will have an effect on the U.S. Catholic Church for years to come.

"I just can see how his love-from the priests and everybody down-[how] everybody is going to feel this," she added. "I think we're going to get many, many new vocations to the priesthood from his pilgrimage here to America."

Mike Sibenaller, 50, a parishioner at St. Joseph's in Salix, attended the Mass with his son, Philip. He was also struck by the number of young people present, especially the number of young seminarians and sisters, identifiable by their various habits.

When asked to describe what he felt upon seeing the pope for the first time, all Siebenaller could do was laugh and say, "Wow."

"I've seen the president and other celebrities, but this was over and above anyone else I've ever seen," he said. "By far it was the greatest experience I've ever had."

The pope's message that young people should be more involved in the church and that they are the hope of the church, was memorable for both Siebenaller and his son.

"It never really hit me until then that it's going to be up to me and my generation to lead the church, fairly soon-all too soon," said Phil, 21, a junior at Iowa State University.

Phil "just went through the roof" when he saw Pope Benedict for the first time. It was by the work of the Holy Spirit that a "generation gap" didn't exist between the young adults and the 81-year-old pope, he said.

Phil was the one who initially showed interest in going to New York, and with the help of Father Patrick O'Kane, the trip became a reality, his father said.

"He's the leader of the Catholic Church," said Phil, noting of his reasons for wanting see the pope. "He has a brilliant mind. If you've ever listened to his homilies or read his encyclicals, it's just astonishing."

After experiencing such an event, Phil said he feels energized to live out his faith even more.

"When you have 60,000 Catholics in that small of a space, it does empower you that you aren't the only one," he said. "There are more out there."

Throughout the weekend, everyone also had the chance to see some of New York's landmarks, such as Ground Zero, Central Park, the Empire State Building and Broadway shows. Coming from the Midwest, Wyant said visiting New York was a "culture shock."

However, seeing the pope was the highlight of everyone's trip and the reason for their pilgrimage.

"If I had the chance to do it again, I would do it all over again," Wyant said. "Definitely."