MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Pope Francis today celebrated his first mass in his 5-day visit to the Philippines. Attendance was limited to bishops, priests and clergy. (Public masses will be held at the Tacloban Airport and Rizal Park in Manila later this weekend.)

As the pope entered the church for the processional, hundreds of clicks and flashes greeted him, all coming from smart phones of priests and clergy in attendance.

During his homily, Francis admonished the crowd to give up worldy possessions, in accordance with their priestly vows. “Yes, and that would include your smart phones,” the pontiff said.

There was a eerie silence inside the church that one could almost hear a pin drop.

Asked whether he will heed the Pope’s advice, one of those in attendance, Father Damaso de la Cruz told The Adobo Chronicles, “Absolutely. But first I will have to download the photos I took of the Holy Father into my laptop computer.”