Utahns travel to Mexico to see Pope Francis

Friday, Feb. 26, 2016

SALT LAKE CITY — Priests and lay people from Utah travelled to Mexico in order to see Pope Francis firsthand during his Feb. 12-17 visit.

Among the Utahns to see the pope was Father Roberto H. Montoro Sasia, parochial vicar of the Cathedral of the Madeleine, who couldn’t believe it when he got a phone call from his fellow priests in Mexico.

“They were inviting me to be there with them at the Basilica Mass with the pope. … I couldn’t believe it,” said Fr. Montoro. “It was not in my plans. It was a total surprise. … I was ordained in the basilica, and for me to be there [with the pope] was something very special.”

Being inside the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City during the Feb. 13 Mass at which Pope Francis presided was a blessing, he said. 

“To see all the priestly camaraderie was wonderful,” said Fr. Montoro, adding that listening to Pope Francis was even more moving than seeing him.

“For me it was Christ talking as that loving and tender father. … Since the beginning of his talk, ‘You are Juan Diego and the Virgin tells you that she needs you to build more houses and spread the word among others. …’ In my personal experience this was to reinforce the sense of my priesthood,” said Fr. Montoro. 

The general ambiance at the Mass was of peace and happiness, Fr. Montoro said, and in the basilica he felt that God and the Virgin Mary were hugging and  sheltering everyone “and surrounding us with their love.” 

After that experience, Fr. Montoro traveled to Morelia, where he had been invited to participate in the Feb. 16 Mass that Pope Francis celebrated with priests, religious, consecrated persons and seminarians.

“This Mass was very powerful, too,” Fr. Montoro said. “When Pope Francis said ‘Tell me how you live and I will tell you what’s your prayer, tell me how you pray and how you live. ... Never forget where you learned how to pray. …’ it came to my mind all the people in our community who are very hurt. I took it as clues to do better in my service here in Utah.” 

Also traveling to see the pope in Mexico were Bonifacio and Josefina Rubio from Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Parish in Midvale. Last  November they had been in Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico and saw a book in which people could write prayers that were going to be delivered to the pope during his visit to that state.

“That caught my attention, and my husband and I put in a prayer. ... When we came back to Utah I prayed and prayed to be able to go back and see him [the pope],” said Josefina Rubio.

Time passed. By February they still weren’t able to get any tickets to see the pope, but they decided to travel to Juarez anyway “and just wait for him to pass by in the street,” said Josefina.

 After making that decision, they heard that a parish in Juarez was going to raffle some tickets for attendance at the pope’s Feb. 17 Mass in that city, so the Rubios put their names in for the drawing. 

“We got a call and got tickets for the Holy Mass. … We couldn’t believe it,” said Josefina, breaking into tears of joy as she narrated her story.

“I am very grateful for all these gifts that God has given us. … We are still very moved,” added Bonifacio Rubio.

For both of them the experience was life-changing, they said.

“When we arrived at the point where the Mass was going to take place, we arrived with a lot of joy. … Everyone was very happy and excited and it was contagious,” said Bonifacio. “The Mass, his words – What can I say? It was wonderful to see that he cares about us, he cares about what Mexico is living, he cares about the people. We have followed him and his message. He is worried and he cares for us, and that’s a blessing.”