November 27, 2015
John Kopp/PhillyVoice
Pope Francis and more than 2,700 others helped paint this mural, titled "The Sacred Now: Faith and Family in the 21st Century," during the World Meeting of Families.
A mural that Pope Francis and more than 2,700 other people helped paint during the World Meeting of Families will be dedicated Monday morning.
The mural, titled "The Sacred Now: Faith and Family in the 21st Century," honors Pope Francis' visit to Philadelphia in late September. It set a new Guinness World Record for most contributions to a painting by numbers.
Participants from more than 100 countries helped paint the mural during a series of community paint days and the World Meeting of Families Congress.
The mural spans three building facades at the future home of Saint Malachy School, at 11th and Thompson streets in North Philadelphia. It consists of 153 individual panels measuring 5-foot-by-5-foot, totaling 4,239 square feet.
About 100 students from Saint Malachy and Saint Veronica Independence Mission schools will join Mayor Michael Nutter and WMOF Executive Director Donna Crilley Farrell for the dedication. Jane Golden, executive director of the city's Mural Arts Program, also will be on hand.
Pope Francis served Mass to hundreds of thousands of pilgrims on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the conclusion to a whirlwind weekend in which he also spoke on immigration at Independence Hall and participated in a concert on the Parkway.
