Pope receives image of Immaculate Conception made from Palo Cathedral's debris

In his visit to the Palo Cathedral on Saturday, Pope Francis, a known Marian devotee, was gifted an image of the Immaculate Conception made from the debris of the church that suffered massive damage from super typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

The Pope received the image from Palo Archbishop John Du during his brief meeting with the religious leaders who gathered at the cathedral.

In turn, the Pope gave the Palo Cathedral a mosaic image of the Madonna del Popolo, or "Madonna of the People," according to the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.

A close up of the Madonna del Popolo, his gift to the Palo Cathedral. #PapalVisitPH pic.twitter.com/XV2JhamN7j

— CBCPNews (@cbcpnews) January 17, 2015

The Pope had to make his encounters at Palo brief because his flight from Tacloban City to Manila was bumped up to 1 p.m. from the original 5 p.m. schedule.

However, it didn't stop him from ticking everything off his official itinerary for Palo, which included:

* lunch with Yolanda and Bohol earthquake survivors
* blessing of the Pope Francis Center for the Poor
* meeting with the religious at Palo Cathedral
* blessing of the mass grave at the back of the cathedral.

Pope Francis, who is in the Philippines for a five-day state and apostolic visit, arrived at Tacloban City on Saturday morning despite a storm signal announcement there, and officiated a Mass at the airport's apron wearing a yellow raincoat similar to those used by the public. —Rose-An Jessica Dioquino /KBK, GMA News