Planning the Papal Visit

By CLAUDIA McDONNELL

The visit of Pope Benedict XVI to New York, with all of its special events, needs to run as smoothly as the limousine that carries him from John F. Kennedy International Airport into Manhattan.

One man is responsible for seeing that it does.

Mark G. Ackermann is the executive director of the archdiocesan Office of the Papal Visit. His job is to oversee almost every detail of planning and managing the visit of the pope and those who will be traveling with him. That includes such tasks as working on security; arranging for lodging and hospitality for visiting dignitaries, including U.S. cardinals and bishops; distributing tickets for papal events; booking popular entertainment for the papal youth rally at St. Joseph's Seminary; making sure that reporters and other media people have lodging and any technical assistance they need; and seeing to it that the papal schedule is followed to the minute.

It's a job that requires the skills of a corporate leader, a major general and an impresario, not to mention unflappability and the patience of Job. Ackermann, who spent 25 years at St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan and was most recently its chief administrative officer, seems both exceptionally qualified for the job and delighted to be doing it. In a recent interview in his office at the New York Catholic Center in Manhattan, he spoke about his role in the New York papal trip.

"It is truly a privilege and an honor," he said. He also praised the many people working with him to make the visit a success.

Ackermann leads a task force of more than 50 persons, mostly bishops, priests, religious and lay employees of the archdiocese. In addition, there are hundreds of volunteers from various parishes who will assist at papal events.

Ackermann noted that he is working with "a wide range of city, state and federal agencies."

"I can't tell you how cooperative and helpful they have been," he said. They include the New York City Police Department and the U.S. Secret Service, which will coordinate the papal motorcades here. Ackermann added that the office of New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has been "very helpful."

Ackermann also is working with the U.S. Department of State and the White House. He noted that the pope, as head of Vatican City State, receives the same protection as any other visiting head of state. And he said that President Bush has asked the White House physician to work with the pope's physicians to ensure that Pope Benedict remains healthy and safe during his visit. Last week the White House physician toured the sites where papal events will take place.

The pope will be in New York from Friday to Sunday, April 18 to 20. On April 18 he will address the U.N. General Assembly and lead an ecumenical prayer service at St. Joseph's Church in the Yorkville section of Manhattan. On Saturday, April 19, he will celebrate Mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral for priests and religious from throughout the United States. Pope Benedict then will go to St. Joseph's Seminary in Dunwoodie, where he will meet with seminarians; with disabled young people; and with teens and young adults. On April 20 he will pray at Ground Zero and celebrate Mass in Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

The logistics associated with the events are formidable. For example, about 800 buses are due to arrive at Yankee Stadium for the Mass, the largest number of buses ever to arrive at a single site in New York City. There will be 800 concelebrants-cardinals, bishops and priests-on the altar, and an additional 550 priests in the stands who will distribute Communion. Up to 400 buses will bring 25,000 young people-including 2,500 seminarians-to Yonkers Raceway to be transferred by shuttle bus to St. Joseph's Seminary.

Although planning a papal visit is a complex undertaking, Ackermann noted that he and his staff had an "enormously helpful" resource to use as a blueprint: the visit of Pope John Paul II to New York in 1995. The plans for this April are following "the same basic structure," Ackermann said.

One thing has changed significantly.

"This is a post-9/11 era," Ackermann noted. "Security is much tighter." He recalled the moment when Pope John Paul, having led the recitation of the Rosary in St. Patrick's Cathedral, walked outside, bypassed his waiting car and took an unscripted walk on Fifth Avenue and down East 50th Street, shaking outstretched hands and blessing the crowds behind police barricades.

"Unfortunately, I don't think you'll see something as extemporaneous as that," Ackermann said. The pope and those who come to see him will be under more rigorous restriction.

More than 90,000 persons are expected to attend papal events. The name, address and birth date of each one are being entered in a database, by order of the Secret Service. Tickets to papal events are not transferable. Personnel whose positions will be closest to the pope are undergoing more extensive background checks.

Security requirements prohibit anyone from carrying an umbrella to a papal event. But that doesn't mean that if the skies open, there will be throngs of soggy spectators. Ackermann is ready for rain-with 100,000 ponchos.

In case of medical emergencies, St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan will provide ambulances during papal parades and events. St. Joseph's Hospital in Yonkers will supply first aid facilities for the events taking place at St. Joseph's Seminary in Dunwoodie.

One of the few things that Ackermann is not directly responsible for is the pope's lodging and hospitality. Pope Benedict will be the guest of Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the Vatican's nuncio-or ambassador-to the United Nations, whose headquarters is the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See in Manhattan. The archbishop's staff is handling arrangements.

For other dignitaries and for several thousand members of the media, Ackermann has to find rooms.

"We've had to work with a myriad of hotels around the city," Ackermann said. He added that Joseph E. Spinnato, president and CEO of the New York City Hotel Association Inc., has been "a godsend to us" in making arrangements.

The papal visit promises to be "one of the busiest weekends in New York except for Christmas," Ackermann said. Having so many visitors "will inconvenience the city in some ways, and we're sorry for that," he added. Traffic jams, for example, are inevitable. On the flip side, the city's economy will get a big boost.

"We're filling hotels and restaurants," Ackermann noted, and theaters are likely to see larger audiences as well, making the visit "a very good thing for the city."

But the papal visit is, first and finally, a spiritual event. Ackermann noted that Cardinal Egan wants the visit to be spiritually enriching for as many people as possible, and not just Catholics. The service at St. Joseph's Church in Yorkville, Ackermann said, will be an "unprecedented gathering" at which the pope will address members of other churches about his vision for the future of ecumenical relations. In addition, the timing of the visit has a strong interfaith link: it will occur as Jews gather for Passover, one of Judaism's holiest and most joyous celebrations.

For Catholic New Yorkers, there will be moments of special significance. Pope Benedict will become the first pope to celebrate Mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral. And Ackermann observed that the Mass at Yankee Stadium "is becoming a national event" because it will celebrate the historic anniversaries of five dioceses: Baltimore, marking 200 years since it became the first archdiocese in the United States; and the four dioceses marking the 200th anniversary of their founding: New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Louisville (originally Bardstown). Attending the Mass will be representatives from virtually every diocese in the United States.

Ackermann noted that Cardinal Egan strongly desires that the papal visit will be "truly pastoral," and that the people of the archdiocese spiritually prepare for it. He said that the cardinal's constant focus on the spiritual side of the visit "really has been inspiring to everybody involved."

Msgr. William J. Belford, chancellor, has been appointed to the papal task force in charge of spiritual preparation.

Ackermann explained that after working in health care administration for 25 years at St. Vincent's, he had taken some time off to be with his family. At the cardinal's request, he undertook the papal visit post. It was "insightful" of the cardinal to bring in a full-time administrator for the visit, because "it truly is a full-time job and more," Ackermann added.

And while the job has its stresses and challenges, it also brings great spiritual benefits, he said. He praised the many dedicated people he is working with, including cardinals and bishops; the staffs of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the New York State Catholic Conference; employees of the New York Archdiocese; and the hundreds of volunteers in the parishes.

Ackermann noted that archdiocesan staffers and volunteers, while doing their regular day jobs, are putting in "many, many hours" to ensure that the pope's visit is a great success "from a temporal perspective and a spiritual perspective."

He added, "The dedication of the people on the task force and who work in this building and in parishes all around this archdiocese is inspiring to me and has nurtured my faith."

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