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Pope To See Ground Zero In 1st U.S. Visit

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 13, 2007

BALTIMORE - Pope Benedict XVI will travel to the United States for the first time as pontiff next year to meet with President Bush, address the United Nations and visit ground zero, a Vatican official told American bishops Monday.

Benedict will visit only Washington and New York during his April 15-20 trip, despite invitations from bishops elsewhere across the country.

He will celebrate public Mass at the new Nationals Park stadium in Washington and at Yankee Stadium, according to Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Vatican ambassador to the United States.

The pope will convene separate national meetings with leaders of other faiths, Roman Catholic priests, Catholic university presidents and diocesan religious educators.

Benedict has dedicated his pontificate to fighting secularism and strengthening Catholic identity. Tradition-minded American Catholics have long complained that Catholic universities have lost their religious identity.

The visit coincides with the third anniversary of Benedict's election to succeed Pope John Paul II on April 19, 2005.

The Associated Press

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