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Author John Thavis Predicts Successful Papal Visit

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Journalist and author of the new book, The Vatican Prophesies, John Thavis, predicted, in the face of skepticism and doubt, that the Papal visit to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families will ultimately be successful.

Thavis, who has covered the Vatican for thirty years, told Chris Stigall on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT that prognostications of disaster are, almost always, overstated.

"I have seen this happen over and over again. Predictions go from, first of all, tremendous excitement and then you have the period of predicting disasters - they're going to be too many people, and then about week before, a few days before the Pope arrives, suddenly, people start worrying, what if nobody comes? It bounces around like ping pong ball. Usually there's a happy ending. Certainly, Papal trips to United States have always been very successful."

He explained the Catholic Church uses the World Meeting of Families to connect with parishioners in ways that doctrinal announcements do not.

"It's actually a very important set of meetings because for the Catholic Church, the family is the essential unit when it comes to modern society, and when it comes to its own evangelizing. The Church realizes that for Catholicism to grow and continue, it needs families that live the faith. You can do all you want to put parish programs in place, but if you don't have families on board, the faith is not going to be handed down from one generation to the other."

Thavis also agreed that Pope Francis is attempting to change the perception of the Church to appear more open and welcoming.

"This Pope is a realist. He knows that the Church can preach all it wants and hand out the catechism as much as it wants. But even among its own faithful, 40 percent of Catholics in the United States have been through a divorce. In that sense, the Church has to be willing to say, we're with you all the same, and not only that, our doors are open to you, all the same. That's what this Pope has done. He has moved away from this idea that the Catholic Church is standing at the door with a set of rules and he's moved toward the idea that we have to open the doors, welcome people in, and then maybe, gradually, we tell them, here's what we teach."

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