Cynthia Olmstead, 49, of South Yarmouth, Mass., who identifies as a secular humanist, said she admired his message of inclusiveness, tolerance, social justice and environmentalism. She said she lived in Argentina when Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio made headlines there for taking public transit and mingling with the poor. Now, she said, she is hoping to take her children to New York to see him as Pope Francis. “I know it sounds strange, but I just feel like it would be a moving experience to see him,” she said. “It’s almost like if you’ve gone to see any kind of civil rights leader speak, and they have a kind of universal message, and even if you don’t necessarily belong to that ethnic group or religious group, you’re moved by the message.”
“Ever since he became the pope, I have been in awe of this man,” said Lorina Marshall-Blake, 63, an assistant pastor of her Baptist church who is volunteering. “It’s the first time that I’ve ever seen a pope or a person like him that is so real and so approachable.”
Ilyse Shapiro, another volunteer, said her husband was understandably perplexed when she announced that she wanted to take part in the event. After all, Ms. Shapiro, 49, just celebrated her bat mitzvah a few years ago. “Clearly, I’m Jewish,” she said with a laugh. “But I told him, ‘It transcends Catholicism. It transcends religion.’ This pope is speaking for the poor and the powerless. That is beyond religion.”
“He’s just one of my favorite people,” Mr. El Sehamy said. “He’s so humble and so into people.” He added: “I’m a Muslim. But I believe that maybe God sent this guy to unite everybody together.”
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