Filipino crowd give Pope rousing welcome

May 2, 2008  --  Got something to say?
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popemobile.jpgBy Jennie L. Ilustre
WASHINGTON - Pope Benedict XVI April 15 received a raucous welcome from
around 500 Filipino-Americans at Andrews Air Base in Maryland, who sang
“Happy Birthday” upon his arrival to kick off his five-day papal visit
in the United States.
“We all sang ‘Happy Birthday’ in really loud voices, and he heard us and
he looked at us, smiled and waved,” said Millie Constantino in a phone
interview an hour later, as she and husband Lito, who works as assistant
vice president at Provident Bank in Alexandria, headed for home in
nearby Virginia state.
The papal plane “Shepherd One” touched down at 4 p.m. here.
Using binoculars, the Constantinos saw President Bush, his wife Laura
and daughter Jenna greet the Pope, the second papal visitor since Pope
John Paul II came to Washington D.C. in 1979.
“There were a lot of media, and a TV correspondent from London asked me
why I was there, I told him I wanted to hear the Pope’s message of
peace,” Millie said.
The Constantinos saw other Filipino Americans, most of whom worked at
the base or were active and retired military personnel. “I saw a lot of
old men, retired servicemen,” Lito said, noting the area is near Oxon
Hill, informally known as Filipino town.
Rev. Michael Montoya, MJ, the first Filipino American executive director
of the US Catholic Mission based here, said in an interview, “The Pope
brings a message of hope that comes from God. In his own words, the Pope
said the visit intends to “reach out spiritually to all Catholics in the
United States.”
Security is tight during the historic visit as the Pope has received
death threats from al Qaeda.
“It was a beautiful and memorable experience to see the Pope, the direct
successor of St. Peter,” Lito said.
The couple said they did not mind the security checks, and even welcomed
it. They and their group were also bused to the airport by the military.
Lito and Millie were lucky to get tickets to the airport. They had
attended a Mass at the Andrews Air Force Base chapel. The bishop
announced that the first 25 people in that Mass would get tickets to
welcome the Pope.
“We were in Maryland visiting friends when we spotted the chapel and
decided to attend the Mass at 5 p.m.,” Lito said.
The Constantinos are members of Bukas Loob sa Diyos (BLD), a charismatic
group.

The next day, BLD members joined Latino Catholics to cheer the Pontiff along his motorcade to the papal nunciature, right after his White House meeting.
“We are all excited to see the Pope,” BLD leader Ellen Carag said in a
phone interview Sunday. She said there would be more Latinos, “and they
will have banners and musicians among them.” The Latinos comprise the
largest minority in the United States at 40 million. The US has a total
population of 300 million.
Ellen and her husband Vic are the parish-based mission coordinators of
BLD, a charismatic group founded in the Philippines in the 70s.
She said the multicultural affairs office of the D.C. archdiocese has
assigned their group to join Latinos in front of the World Bank, located
and two blocks from the White House.
“It seems there would also be anti-Catholic demonstrators along the
papal route,” she said. The Pope is visiting an America that has been
largely divided on the issue of illegal immigration, as well as the
church’s slow action on children and teen sex abuse by priests.

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Posted by News Team | Filed Under Around DC 

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