EXCLUSIVE! THIS IS WHAT THE POPE FRANCIS SAID: A Kurir journalist’s recollection of meeting him and receiving a SPECIAL GIFT! Here’s what he said about Serbia

Pope Francis was buried on Saturday in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, and with each passing day after his death, new stories from his life are emerging in public—stories that had previously been unknown, but which best illustrate just how simple and humble the late head of the Roman Catholic Church truly was.

The author of these lines can also attest to that, having attended Pope Francis’s funeral in the Vatican on behalf of the Kurir editorial team.

A meeting to remember

A chance encounter that will never be forgotten took place in 2015 during a visit to St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. It was an unusually calm day with very few tourists, which in itself was something of a miracle.

After paying respects at the tomb of the Holy Apostle Peter, the first among the apostles, a walk through the basilica followed, taking in the Renaissance frescoes by some of the greatest artists of all time.

At one moment, near the very exit from the basilica onto the square, a familiar voice was heard. None other than the Pontifex Maximus – Pope Francis!

At the time only in his second year on the throne of St Peter, the Pope appeared no different from any other elderly Roman Catholic monk, apart from the white cassock that only he has the right to wear.

Surprised, and somewhat afraid, I approached to express my respect, fully aware that I was standing before one of the most important people in the Church and the world.

The Pope, who was accompanied by a friar, far from any imaginable protocol, smiled broadly as I came toward him and asked me where I was from.

A heartfelt gift

I explained that I was from Serbia and the purpose of my visit to the Eternal City.

“Wonderful, Serbia is a Christian country with many holy people. I would love to visit it. Convey my blessing to all people of goodwill and greet everyone there,” the Pope said, sincerely and from the heart.

I thanked him, and as we parted, he gave a gentle smile, quietly said something to the friar accompanying him, and gestured toward his bag. The friar immediately nodded and pulled from his satchel a bronze cross—identical to the one the Pope himself wore and never parted with!

That cross remained with him until the final day of his pontificate, and a replica of it is now placed above his tomb in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.

“This is for you. May it protect you and carry the blessing of our Lord, who is the good shepherd and loves all people regardless of faith or nationality. And may you remember me in your prayers as a theologian and member of the Church of Christ,” he added at the end.

A great blessing

I have kept that cross to this day as a great blessing and a memory of this wonderful, humble servant of God and true shepherd of the Church.

Exactly a decade later, the Pope’s cross was with me again during my stay in the Vatican for his funeral.

Incidentally, the cross he wore was not the typical papal cross. After being chosen as the successor of Saint Peter, Francis decided to keep the one he had worn while Archbishop of Buenos Aires.

It features details described in the Gospel of Luke, specifically in the parable of the Good Shepherd and the lost sheep.

“What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost’” (Luke 15:4–7)

Rest in peace, good man!
Kurir.rs/Aleksandar Panić