April 10, 2008

Keeping an Eye on the Papal Visit

By Pam Flynn

Managing Editor

Yes, the pope is coming to America and hundreds of thousands of people will get to see him. But what about those people who are unable to visit New York and Washington, D.C. next week? Luckily, many websites, television stations and radio stations will be offering comprehensive and live coverage of Pope Benedict XVI's April 15-20 visit to the United States.

EWTN Catholic Network is planning to broadcast radio and television coverage of the Pope's visit. Schedules can be found at www.ewtn.com. Coverage by EWTN will also include live streaming video on the internet.

The Catholic Channel of Sirius Satellite Radio, a joint effort of Sirius and the Archdiocese of New York, plans to provide listeners with uninterrupted live coverage of the pope's appearances at liturgies and other major events in Washington and New York. Masses at Yankee Stadium in New York and Nationals Stadium in Washington will be broadcast live.

Sirius plans to add two channels for the trip: one that will repeat full coverage of the day's events on a looping schedule, and another that will offer historic speeches and other archival material from previous papal visits to the United States. The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159, is a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week operation that began broadcasting in December 2006.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will provide live streaming video of events as they happen on their website located at www.usccb.org. The USCCB is also offering follow up and repeat coverage on the internet at http://www.uspapalvisit.org/.

For those able to visit New York and D.C. during the upcoming visit, there will also be opportunities to see the pope in person. According to Catholic News Service, "Washingtonians and visitors to the nation's capital will have opportunities to greet Pope Benedict XVI during his April 15-17 visit to Washington." An important part of the pope's demanding itinerary includes opportunities for the public to see the pope as he travels to some events, according to a news release from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. While details of the pope's travel routes were still being finalized, that there will be several opportunities for the general public to welcome the pope as he travels in the popemobile.

On Wednesday, April 16, President and Mrs. Bush will welcome Pope Benedict XVI to the White House. The President and the Holy Father will continue discussions, which they began during the President's visit to the Vatican in June 2007, on their common commitment to the importance of faith and reason in reaching shared goals. Coverage of this historic meeting will be covered on many news stations, as well as the internet sites for the USCCB and EWTN, and The Catholic Channel Sirius Radio 159.

On Thursday, April 17, Pope Benedict XVI will celebrate Mass at Nationals Park in D.C. Then His Holiness will visit the Catholic University of America (CUA). A broadcast of the Mass and the Holy Father's CUA address will air on CUA's cable Channel 36 in the residence halls and a live stream will be available on CUA's Web site at http://papalvisit.cua.edu/.

Also, the Vatican web site coverage at HERE.