Papal Mass in Juárez to be telecast in El Paso stadium
Sun Bowl has 51,000 seats; tickets are $15
New Mexicans unwilling to brave a trip to Mexico on Feb. 17 when Pope Francis visits Ciudad Juárez can celebrate Mass with Archbishop of Santa Fe John C. Wester that afternoon at El Paso’s Sun Bowl stadium.
Wester will participate in what is described as a cross-border Mass at the 51,000-seat University of Texas El Paso’s football stadium, where giant-screen TVs will telecast the 4 p.m. papal Mass held across the Rio Grande in Juárez, the Archdiocese of Santa Fe said Monday.
The Sun Bowl is located close to the open-air park near the international border where Pope Francis will hold a ticket-only Mass for an estimated 220,000 faithful.
“Archbishop Wester and participating U.S. bishops will be situated on a levee on the U.S. side of the border, about 300 yards from the pope,” the archdiocese said in a written statement. Bishop of Las Cruces Oscar Cantú also is expected to participate in what is called the Two Nations, One Faith papal telecast.
The pope’s visit to Juárez will end his six-day visit to Mexico. Pope Francis also plans to visit a prison and meet with business leaders and factory workers during his one-day visit to Ciudad Juárez.
Wester plans a second event, a symposium on immigration, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 24 at Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in Albuquerque as part of a Holy Year of Mercy called for by Pope Francis to discuss uprooted and displaced populations.
The symposium will feature Wester’s address at 7 p.m. followed by personal testimony, a panel discussion and a question-and-answer period. For more information, call 831-8151.