Archbishop Blase Cupich meets with Pope Francis
VATICAN CITY (WLS) -- Chicago's Archbishop Blase Cupich met with Pope Francis Friday afternoon in Vatican City, Vatican officials said.
According to Vatican sources, the two met in the Vatican Hotel residence called Domus Santa Marta, which is also where Pope Francis lives.
In an exclusive interview with ABC7's Alan Krashesky, he said, "In terms of meeting with the Holy Father, I'm looking forward to meeting with him, he's a great man."
One thing we now know about Archbishop Cupich is that he knows how to keep a secret. The Vatican made the surprise announcement Saturday that Pope Francis and the archbishop met for the very first time on Friday.
The Chicagoans on the archbishop's pilgrimage certainly didn't know.
"I think that's great," said Father Wayne Watts, St. John Berchamans in Logan Square. "Our archbishop is a humble man so he wouldn't be saying, 'Oh, I'm meeting the Pope.'"
"This is the ninth time this has happened with the Archbishop of Chicago here," said Father Jack Wall. "You really have a sense of the history of the Archdiocese of Chicago and it's always to be one with the popes and the church universal and the church here in the Diocese of Rome."
EXCLUSIVE: Archbishop Cupich prepares for Pope Francis visit
It is beneath a massive high altar inside St. Peter's Basilica where the pallium is being kept that the archbishop will receive from Pope Francis.
"Below there is an area right above the tomb of Peter, a glass area, a little box, it's in that area that the palliums are put there in order to remind us all who wear it, that we follow in the words of Jesus who said to Peter, 'Feed my sheep,'" Cupich said.
For Catholics, there is a leadership connection from Pope Francis going all the way back to St. Peter, a key disciple of Jesus.
The Mass Saturday for Chicagoans was celebrated at what is called the altar of the "Chair of Saint Peter." The 75-ton sculpture by Bernini on the rear wall is believed by Catholics to contain a remnant of an actual chair used by the disciple.
The word "chair" in Latin is "cathedra," and why today we call some special church buildings "Cathedrals."
"It's humbling to be in this vast basilica, at the chair of St. Peter. For, we realize we are connected with those who have gone before us, marked with the sign of faith," Cupich said. "So it's the history, but also the person of St. Peter that's very present in that action."
Now we know the archbishop has a new connection with Pope Francis, the Pope who gave him a prominent position of leadership in the American Catholic Church.
ABC7's Alan Krashesky will be at Monday's Mass and will have more on the archbishop's big day on ABC7 Eyewitness News.
