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Apr 18, 2008 12:30 am US/Eastern
Pope Benedict Prepares For Day 2 In New York
Midtown Mass, Youth Day At St. Joseph's Seminary Highlight What's Sure To Be Memorable Middle Day Of Trip
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Pope Benedict XVI arrives at the United Nations General Assembly Hall on April 18.
Stan Honda/AFP /Getty Images
Friday was busy but it was only the tip of the iceberg.
Outside the cathedral that'll see Pope Benedict XVI celebrate mass on Saturday, security and spirits were high Friday night.
"There's nothing more thrilling I guess short of Jesus Christ himself coming down from heaven and being with us," Deacon Eric Kunz said.
Inside St. Patrick's Cathedral, amidst the pictures and prayers, priests were practicing their papal procession.
"We're ready to go, we're ready to go. I mean we're very excited," said Father Michael Sullivan, the master of ceremonies at St. Patrick's.
Then there were some sisters, who drove 14 hours from Indiana to try to get a good look at Pope Benedict.
"It's really exciting," Maria Gemma said. "I can't believe we're actually in the same church where the pope is going to be tomorrow. Unbelievable.'"
After the mass, the Holy Father will head to St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers for a youth day rally with 20,000 youngsters, including a short concert by former American Idol star Kelly Clarkson.
On Friday they were all getting ready.
The pope will also say a mass with seminarians, whose numbers are dwindling. The hope is the pope can act as a recruiter.
"A lot of us owe our vocations to the fact that John Paul II came and called on us to follow Christ," Deacon Michael Houser said.
Back at St. Patrick's, the preparations continued for those hoping for a glimpse. Michelle Harrison had that already. She saw Pope Benedict address the United Nations on Friday morning.
"I shook hands with the pope. It was incredible. Being brought up Catholic, it's something you never expect to do in your lifetime, so it was wonderful. Thoroughly heavenly I guess," Harrison said.
If you're thinking about driving around the city on Saturday, take note of street closures in effect for the pope's visit.
The frozen zone around St. Patrick's Cathedral was to begin at Midnight Friday.
* 50th and 51st streets between Fifth and Sixth avenues will remain closed until 3 p.m. on Saturday.
* 47th Street through 53rd Street, from Sixth Avenue to Park Avenue will be off limits between 5 a.m. and 3 p.m. During those hours, Madison Avenue will be closed from 47th to 53rd and Fifth Avenue will be shut down from 47th through 73rd.
