Hats off for Pope Francis!
BY AURELIE HAGSTROM
O
ctober 16, 2013 is a day that
Joe Day (’15) will never forget.
The Providence Collge in Rome
Program attended the weekly Papal
Audience with Pope Francis. We
were thrilled when “Providence
College” was officially welcomed
over the loud speakers in the list of
English-speaking pilgrim groups.
But we never imagined what would
come during the Pope’s drive
around the Square.
Our student, Joe Day (’15),
brought a zucchetto for Pope Francis (the white skull cap he wears).
Inside the hat was a note saying
“Providence College loves Pope
Francis”. Here’s how Joe described
the experience:
“It is a tradition in the Church that
some pilgrims bring a white zucchetto (skull cap) to present to the
Pope at his audiences. The Pope
either exchanges zucchetti or places
the pilgrim’s on his head for a
moment before returning it. I had
heard of this custom shortly before
leaving for Rome and have had the
opportunity to see it performed
several times. On Wednesday
morning we arrived at St. Peter’s
at 6:00AM and waited in line until
the square opened at 7:30. We had
scoped out some prime real estate
in the front right section of seating by the central pathway leading
from the Obelisk to the steps of
the Basilica. What we didn’t know
was that the Swiss Guards were
going to line that pathway with
those in wheelchairs. This acted
to our advantage. Around 9:50
Pope Francis entered the Square
and drove around it, kissing babies,
smiling, and waving. Near the end,
he came down the pathway in front
Pope Francis with Joe Day and other Providence College students
of us. We were all ecstatic with
the excitement of being so close to
our Papa. We all leaned over the
barricade as he slowing (because of
the wheelchairs) drove towards us.
F