Thousands packed Rate Field on Saturday to celebrate the papacy of Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV, marking a historic moment for the local Catholic community and a point of pride for the city.
The event, hosted by the Archdiocese of Chicago, drew an estimated 30,000 people and included a live-streamed address from Pope Leo. It was the pope’s first direct address to an American audience since being elected last month.
“It’s a pleasure for me to greet all of you gathered together in White Sox park on this great celebration as a community of faith,” Pope Leo said in his opening remarks. “I want to both express my gratitude to you and also encourage you to continue to build up community [and] friendship as brothers and sisters in your daily lives, in your families, in your parishes, in the archdiocese and throughout the world.”
Cardinal Blase Cupich, who led the Mass, called the day “a wonderful celebration of a Chicago pope.”
“It has been a really exciting time since Pope Leo was elected. I know — I was there,” Cupich said. “I could sense, even in Rome, the energy in Chicago, knowing how excited everyone was.”
Cardinal Blase Cupich led Saturday’s Mass and called the event “a wonderful celebration of a Chicago pope.”
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Cupich also used the occasion to speak out about immigration and the treatment of undocumented people in the U.S.
“It is wrong to scapegoat those who are here without documents,” Cupich said during his homily. “For indeed, they are here due to a broken immigration system. And it is a broken immigration system which both parties have failed to fix.
Cupich encouraged those gathered to look to the undocumented and find qualities they share in common.
“So many of the undocumented have for decades been connected to us,” Cupich said. “They are here not by invasion, but by invitation — an invitation to harvest the fruits of the earth that feed our families; an invitation to clean our tables, homes and hotel rooms; an invitation to landscape our lawns; and yes, even an invitation to care for our children and elders.”
Cupich said that by looking for connections instead of differences, people can “respond to this moment and thus reclaim our calling to live as authentic persons in the image of divine persons.”
The celebration included live music, prayer and moments of reflection. Both the Peruvian and U.S. national anthems were performed, celebrating the pope’s dual citizenship in both countries.
Students from Our Lady of Mount Carmel Academy, 720 W. Belmont Ave., who recently participated in a mock conclave to learn about the papal election process, attended the celebration dressed as cardinals and Pontifical Swiss Guard. The Leo Catholic High School choir also performed following Pope Leo’s remarks.
Members of the church passed out cards commemorating the ceremony with photos and quotes from the pope on the back. Attendees could also receive certificates commemorating their “first Mass at the ballpark.”
“It’s an honor to be part of this historic, wonderful day,” said Dwana DeLaCerna, who received one of those certificates and said she relates personally to the pope’s background.
Dwana DeLaCerna says her family shares many traits with the pope’s family, include Creole ancestry. “It’s an honor to be part of this historic, wonderful day.”
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“I’m Creole, my family is from New Orleans and made its way to Chicago, so my mother’s people did the same route that Pope Leo’s mother did.”
The pope’s grandparents, Joseph Martinez and Louise Baquié, were from New Orleans’ Seventh Ward and moved to Chicago in the early 20th century.
DeLaCerna said her father’s name is also Leo, and Leo Catholic High School is one of the schools her father supported in Chicago.
“There’s just a lot of parallels between my family and Leo’s story,” DeLaCerna said. “So the excitement around that is what made me come here today.”
Many attendees described the day as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and said they felt inspired by the pope’s ties to Chicago, expressing hope that it could reinvigorate the city’s Catholic community.
“It’s such a blessing that the pope came from Chicago,” said Steven Handwerker, who was wearing a Sox jersey with Leo’s name embroidered on the back. “We need our faith to grow more, and our country has a great foundation for that. But I think that with the pope’s strong connection here, more people are going to start coming back to church.”
Ethan Peebles (right) and Steven Handwerker, both wearing Pope Leo XIV jerseys, shake hands during the Archdiocese of Chicago’s celebration of Pope Leo XIV at Rate Field. Handwerker says the Chicago-born pope could bring people back to church.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Maria Marin, a parishioner at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Des Plaines, celebrated Pope Leo’s dual citizenship and ability to speak multiple languages, including Spanish.
“I’m from Mexico, so the fact he speaks Spanish means a lot to me,” Marin said. “I think his worldly experience will help him reach out to the young while also being able to speak to longtime parishioners like me across all backgrounds.”
Others expressed hope the new pope could strengthen ties between the Catholic Church and younger people.
A video of Pope Leo XIV wearing a White Sox cap is shown during the Mass on Saturday at Rate Field. Newlyweds from Boston handed the pope the cap on Wednesday, and he put it on. The photo went viral.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Jeffrey Smith, who graduated from DePaul University on Saturday morning, went straight from his commencement to the Rate Field celebration, still wearing his graduation gown.
“Catholicism has a lot to do with my life,” Smith said. “This is my 17th year of Catholic education, so it means a lot to graduate from DePaul at this time when we have an American pope from the city I grew up in. I know I feel inspired, and I hope others around my age do, too.”
In Saturday’s address, Pope Leo spoke directly to young people, urging them to rediscover their faith after the isolating years of the pandemic.
“To once again, the young people who are gathered, I’d like to say that you are the promise of hope for so many of us,” Pope Leo said. “The world looks to you. … We want you to come together to share with us in this congregation, this church and in society by announcing a message of true hope, promoting peace and promoting harmony among all people.”
Pope Leo concluded with a blessing and a call for unity.
“May you indeed be blessed as you gather together in celebration, may the Lord’s love and peace come upon each and every one of you, on your families, and may God bless all of you so that you might always be reconciled by signs of hope and peace throughout the world,” Leo said.
Maria Marin and her husband, Martin Marin, pose with a cardboard cutout of Pope Leo XIV during the Archdiocese of Chicago’s celebration at Rate Field on Saturday. Maria Marin, who comes from Mexico, celebrated Pope Leo’s dual citizenship and ability to speak multiple languages, including Spanish.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
