When Pope John Paul II visited Miami, hearts and heavens opened. See the photos

Lightning shook the skies, rain pelted the earth. But Pope John Paul II, preaching under an umbrella, wanted to keep saying his outdoor Mass at Tamiami Park during his historic 23-hour visit to Miami-Dade in September 1987.

It was one of the area’s most memorable events, drawing a crowd of more than 150,000.

At the time, it was a stunning coup that then-Archbishop Edward A. McCarthy cajoled the pope to come.

He was the first pope to travel south of Washington — only the third papal journey to America at the time.

John Paul II was an energetic 67-year-old who didn’t flinch at flying from Rome to Miami, making several public appearances, including kissing the babies of the archbishop’s neighbors - meeting with President Ronald Reagan, talking with Jewish leaders and celebrating Mass, all within 23 hours.

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One of the most vivid moments: when the pope, lightning and a tropical rainstorm collided.

Miami was at the epicenter of the the pope’s 1987 11-day, nine-city tour of the United States, for which 21,000 journalists applied for credentials.

And the 10,000 who stayed until the storm passed got an unforgettable treat: The pope returned to the altar to bless them.

Said John Paul II: “I want to express to all of you my admiration for your persistence and perseverance.”

Let’s take a look at his time in Miami through the coverage and photos in the Miami Herald archives:

What the pope’s Miami visit looked like

Lightning short-circuits Mass as pope praises Miami’s compassion

Published Sept. 12, 1987

Lightning and torrential rains cut short the papal Mass Friday at Tamiami Park, but only after an emotional rendezvous between Pope John Paul II and thousands of followers, and two- thirds of a sermon in which the pontiff praised Miami as a “community of compassion.”

What was to have been the climax of the ceremony, Holy Communion, never came.

At 12:06 p.m., just after the pope had beseeched the estimated 150,000 worshipers to “stay in touch with your own roots, your cultures and your traditions” and to “make every effort to preserve the unity which has the Spirit as its origin and peace as its binding force,” papal aide Monsignor Piero Marini whispered something in the pope’s right ear.

The pontiff fell silent and watched as the crowd, now covered by a massive plastic cocoon in the downpour, joined the choir in spontaneous choruses of Alleluia. The pope smiled as the people swayed back and forth, arms waving.

‘You are beautiful’

A moment later, Archbishop Edward McCarthy took the microphone and said a decision had been made to stop the Mass. The crowd roared back: “No!” Hearing this, the pope said: “Beautiful. You are beautiful.”

Then McCarthy continued: “We are told there is an electrical storm in the area and that it’s not safe to continue.

“As you go back to your cities, continue to thank the Lord for this experience of having the Holy Father with us.”

As two peals of thunder cracked overhead, all live television feeds from the site went dead. Most worshipers rushed from the site, some scrambling over fences or knocking them down to escape the rain.

The pope retired to his makeshift dressing room in a mobile home behind the altar, where he finished the Mass before about 30 bishops and cardinals.

But it was not over. Yet.

Nearly an hour later, long after most people had left, the pope suddenly reappeared at the altar. Several thousand people who had stayed behind pressed forward as he spoke.

“I was sad to interrupt the celebration because of the atmospheric circumstances,” he told them. “I want to express to all of you my admiration for your persistence and perseverance.” He blessed them.

At 1:10 p.m., the papal motorcade left for Miami International Airport. Forty-two minutes later, Shepherd One took off for South Carolina.

The rain had let up and the lucky few who had caught the pope’s surprise encore were overjoyed.

“I am speechless,” said Terry Phister of Miami. “I am amazed that this happened. I’m so happy I decided to stay and avoid the crowd. It paid off to get wet.”

The interruption came at the stormy end of a 20-hour waiting game that began with people camping out near the Mass site. The gates opened at 11:55 p.m. Thursday, and the wait to get in stretched to 2 1/2 hours at some entrances. But the site’s 264 acres, which could have held 400,000, were less than half full by the time the pope arrived at 10 a.m. from a meeting with American Jewish leaders in downtown Miami.

The weather early Friday was classic South Florida September: Early-morning heat. Brief showers. Even a double rainbow.

The most emotional moments of the day came as the pope, accompanied by Archbishop McCarthy in the glass-enclosed Popemobile, zigzagged through the crowds, coming within just a few feet of worshipers. It was a joy ride in every sense of the phrase.

The crowd surged as he passed. People climbed atop friends’ shoulders; many ran to catch a better view. It was the closest the public would get to the pope. For those who had come from miles and waited for months, the experience was overwhelming.

For Sue Ann Conroy of Fort Lauderdale: “It was beautiful. I’ve got the chills, I swear.”

And for Alice Butler of Miami: “I felt as if he had come just to see me.”

Then came the rains, falling harder as the pope began Mass. Carmen Secleo-Rivera of Miami called it “a giant baptism of South Florida.”

At one point, in sort of a throwback to the Woodstock rock festival, a voice over the loudspeaker warned people away from metal towers holding television cameras: “There’s a slight chance of lightning and we don’t want to send anyone home to the Lord today.”

There were no confirmed hits. Medical workers took 19 people to local hospitals, most for problems related to the heat.

The tower warning, though, was eerie. Thursday in San Antonio, Texas, one of the nine American cities the pope is visiting on his trip, high winds knocked down two towers at the Mass site. No one was hurt.

The press corps at Tamiami had its own problems Friday. Luis Nigaglioni, translating for a live Radio Marti broadcast, dove under a picnic table, telephone in hand, as the storm closed in. “This has got to be a historic event,” he said later. “I don’t think anybody has translated for the pope while hiding under a table.”

But as the pontiff spoke, plans were already in the works to pull the plug. At the rear of the altar, the Rev. Gabriel O’Reilly, Mass site coordinator, huddled with other planners.

“We were getting the best information we could and we knew the front was coming,” he said later. “Because of the danger of lightning, we determined that the best thing we could do was to ask the people to leave. If one person was seriously hurt by lightning we would never have forgiven ourselves.”

The consensus seemed to be that half a Mass -- and a chance to see Pope John Paul up close -- was better than no Mass at all.

Marina Quartas and her family had headed for the exit once the Mass was called off. “We’re very sad because we wanted to stay. But at the same time, we’re happy we got to see the pope at all.”

Monsignor Jude O’Doherty, director of the papal visit, said later: “The common-sense decision was made. Was the right decision made? Who knows? I’m just pleased the Holy Father is safe and that the planning and security went without a hitch. I am only disappointed and saddened that he wasn’t able to complete the one thing that totally unifies us -- the Eucharist.”

The rain brought one other regret. As Oscar Rodriguez left the site, he paused and said:

“We didn’t even get to say goodbye.”

This story was originally published May 9, 2025 at 8:08 AM.