Pope Benedict XVI to Receive Keys to the Commune of Manoppello

Pope Benedict XVI Arriving in Manoppello on September 1, 2006




Pope Benedict XVI speaking in the shrine of the Holy Face on Sept. 1, 2006 with the Holy Face just behind him and the local Archbishop Bruno Forte of the Archdiocese of Chieti-Vasto at his side


Pope Benedict XVI will receive the keys to the Commune of Manoppello in a ceremony to be conducted during a Wednesday audience at St. Peter's Square. This special honor which will link the Pope more closely to the city of the Holy Face was proposed by Paul Badde during the ceremony in May at which he himself received the keys to the Commune of Manoppello. As well, the space next to the shrine of the Holy Face where Pope Benedict's helicopter touched down on the day of his visit to Manoppello on Sept. 1, 2006 will be renamed Pope Benedict XVI Plaza. The civic officials of Manoppello led by Mayor Gennaro Matarazzo and the President of the Communal Council Gaetano Villani are organizing a celebration to take place on a Sunday in September or October to mark these happy events in the history of Manoppello.