MASS, MEETINGS WITH ACADEMIC WORLD AND OTHER RELIGIONS

VATICAN CITY, 17 APR 2008 (VIS) - This morning, Benedict XVI is scheduled to celebrate Mass at 10 a.m. local time (4 p.m. in Rome) at the Nationals Park Stadium of Washington D.C., which has capacity for 45,000 spectators and is the most modern baseball stadium in the United States.

  At 5 p.m. (11 p.m. in Rome) the Pope is due to meet representatives from the Catholic academic world at the Catholic University of Washington. Subsequently, he will go on to meet Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Jainist representatives at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Centre, a structure that includes a study centre on the Magisterium of the Polish Pontiff and of the Catholic Church, a permanent exhibition on Karol Wojtyla, and displays of works of art from the Vatican. Afterwards, in the Pope John Paul II Centre's Polish National Room, he will briefly greet representatives of the Jewish community to whom he will consign a Message for the Feast of the Passover, which begins on Saturday 19 April.

  After the ceremony, the Pope will return to the apostolic nunciature in Washington D.C. where he will dine and spend the night.
PV-U.S.A./UNIVERSITY RELIGIONS/WASHINGTON        VIS 20080417 (210)