What do you think the chances are that we can get His Holiness, Pope Francis, to come to Buffalo? After all, we have a place for him to stay (The Basilica), and there are plenty of downtown parking garages to park the Popemobile. What else would he need in order to show up?
Oh yeah, an invitation!
Well, now we’ve got that covered too. Buffalo Mass Mob is extending mass invitations to Pope Francis, to come to Buffalo in 2015 during his trip to the United States. Not only is the Pontiff being invited to visit Buffalo, he is also being invited to attend a Mass Mob in order to shine a light on the issues that face our struggling urban churches.
A Buffalo Mass Mob organizer, Greg Witul, said, “If the Pope came to Buffalo, it would be historic and a spiritual boost to the whole Niagara Frontier. Western New York has been home to Saints and Blesseds, and has seen a Miracle accredited to Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowski, but a sitting Pope has never visited the area.”
Organizer Alan Oberst added, “Our beloved Pope is so engaging, he even has Protestants intrigued by Catholicism. Our Diocese is soon to launch a campaign called ‘Catholics, Come Home.’ The Buffalo Mass Mob has shined a light on the potential for new media to reintroduce the faithful to struggling parishes. At many levels our atmosphere seems charged for renewal. Imagine the fire that would be ignited here by even the prospect of His Holiness communing with us.”
Buffalo Mass Mobs have been very successful since they first started, not just in Buffalo where the idea was founded, but in other cities where the mission has spread.
If this invitation to the social-media savvy Pope is to get off the ground and be effective, then it is going to take an entire community to back the effort. Already, people on Social Media are taking up the cause, by Tweeting and utilizing Facebook to send the message and build the hype. Click on the links below, and help to spread the good word about Buffalo, and its struggles to strengthen its churches’ congregations, while keeping its historic holy edifices from crumbling at the same time.
Twitter and Facebook addresses for His Holiness, Pope Francis, are:
We can all visit his Twitter and Facebook accounts, and use the hashtag #ComeToBuffaloPopeFrancis and invite him.
Mass Mob photos: Alan Oberst – The last Buffalo Mass Mob attracted 1,000 people to Assumption Church in the Black Rock neighborhood.