Mayor: Pope ‘Probably Won’t Ask Me for Advice’
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WASHINGTON — Mayor Bloomberg says he’s looking forward to meeting Pope Benedict XVI, but he’s not expecting to dispense much in the way of wisdom to the Holy See.
“I suspect he probably won’t ask me for advice as to how to run the Catholic Church or on ethical issues,” the Jewish and divorced mayor quipped to reporters here. Mr. Bloomberg earlier said that he was “honored that he’s coming to New York and I’m honored that I’ll get a chance to meet him.”
The mayor plans to greet the pope upon his arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Friday morning and will see him at events throughout his weekend trip to the city. Mr. Bloomberg said he’ll attend the pope’s Mass at Yankee Stadium on Sunday, although he won’t take communion, he said, “since it’s not part of my faith.”
He appeared impressed with plans to give communion to more than 50,000 Catholics in the span of 15 minutes. “It will be quite something to see. It will be the largest communion I’ve ever seen,” Mr. Bloomberg said.
The pope arrived yesterday afternoon in Washington for his first visit to America since becoming pope in 2005.
