1979 memorobilia ( this is fun ).
For those who braved crowds and a heavy autumn downpour, it remains a shimmering moment in time, a bright memory of a historic event. The Oct. 1, 1979, visit to Boston of Pope John Paul II occurred less than a year into his pontificate and at the height of his popularity. The Holy Father to New England's large Catholic community received a tumultuous welcome.
HISTORIC GREETING: Cardinal Humberto S. Medeiros, archbishop of Boston, and First Lady Rosalynn Carter greeted Pope John Paul II at the start of his first US visit at Logan Airport Oct. 1, 1979. The pope declared later on Boston Common: ''I greet you, America the Beautiful.'' (Globe Staff File Photo / David L. Ryan) More photos of the pope's trip to Boston James M. Pellegrini remembers vividly the Mass on Boston Common, the crowd estimated at more than 400,000, and the soaking rain that could not douse the excitement of the first and only papal visit to the city.
Then an 18-year-old student at the University of Massachusetts at Boston, Pellegrini sat on the enormous stage with 62 cardinals and bishops, waiting to participate as youth lector and offer the prayerful intentions midway through what would be a two-hour Mass. Seated just beyond the roof's edge, he was drenched by steady runoff. The Secret Service was everywhere, even on stage, behind the pillars. The crowd was enormous, beyond a nervous young man's imagination.
