Top 8 Sustainable Moments from Pope in Philly Weekend

There’s no denial here: We were pumped for Pope Francis’ Philadelphia visit all week. The people’s Pope isn’t only challenging many conventional Catholic thoughts, but a huge advocate of addressing Climate Change.

Pope Francis set the tone in front of Congress in DC, expressing the urgency of climate change to many of our national decision makers. So what other magic did Pope Francis deliver this weekend?

Here’s a few of our favorite moments.

8 Sustainable moments from Pope in Philly Weekend:

1. The #Poperide felt more like a bike parade than a group ride. From the moment one joined the #poperide, countless spectators waved, greeted the riders and even popped out of windows to observe and cheer. We knew the Pope was the real star in town, but it was hard not to feel the excitement in the city of the pending Papal weekend. (Just imagine if people supported bikes this much in EVERY DAY LIFE.)

Plus, biking on car-free streets was pretty awesome. Approaching City Hall down the middle of Broad Street was stress-free.

2.  Biking, running & walking across the Ben Franklin Bridge. If you follow us on Instagram, you may notice that a fairly regular part of my workout routine includes running on the (pedestrian path) of the BFB. However, we hopped on the opportunity to bike on the carless bridge… and take a few rare photo ops.

The open lanes even inspired an Open Streets Philly campaign, sparking a few ideas for Mayoral candidate Jim Kenney, too!

3. Indego was on FIRE this weekend. Who knew so many people would embrace bike share in the city traveling from near and afar?

4. That Skyline view from the Ben Franklin Bridge. I worked over the bridge in Jersey for 3 years (in my previous life), and missed so many beautiful skyline photos because I had to deal with other cars on the Ben Franklin. On Sunday night, the Philly skyline looked magical from the empty Ben Franklin Bridge upon sunset:

5. Instead of complaining about the weekend’s affairs, friends who stuck in the city threw appropriately themed parties. My BFF’s birthday/BBQ celebration included DIY pope-hat crafts & much local fare (like that healthy CSA potato salad you see below… yum):

6. Even the animals got Pope Fever.

7. A ranger from the National Park Service talked about our changing climate in front of Independence Hall.  After becoming bummed that I wouldn’t get close to see the Pope, I scored a ticket thanks to my friend. While waiting for the main Papa to take the stage, a few speakers chatted about the weekend, including a ranger from the National Park service. Obviously, he talked about the urgency of climate change in our cities and effects on our beloved national parks.

8. The Pope chatted about Climate Change… a lot. Franky the Pope actually had a science-filled background, which may explain a thing or two at his emphasis on climate change. Concluding his US tour, Pope Francis gave his homily on the Ben Franklin Parkway with one more allusion to Climate Change:

“So we might ask ourselves here today at the end of this festival: How are we trying to live this way in our homes, in our societies? What kind of world do we want to leave to our children (cf. Laudato Si’, 160)? We cannot answer these questions alone, by ourselves. It is the Spirit who challenges us to respond as part of the great human family. Our common house can no longer tolerate sterile divisions. The urgent challenge of protecting our home includes the effort to bring the entire human family together in the pursuit of a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change (cf. ibid., 13).”

Overall, the vibes this weekend left everyone on a Pope high.

Readers, what did you think of this Papal weekend? Tell us in the comments.