Galway girl is Pope Francis’ pen pal!

A twelve-year-old Galway girl is just back from Rome and a personal meeting with the Pope – joining children from across the world for a very special event.

Clara Ó Gormáin – a pupil at Scoil Iognáid in Galway city – was one of hundreds of children around the world who were invited to think of a question they’d like to ask Pope Francis.

What they didn’t know is that thirty of them would go into a special new book – and that those questioners would be invited to meet with the Pontiff in Rome, where she presented with the gift of a tin whistle.

Clara – daughter of Brendan O’Gorman and Síne Phelan and living in Devon Park – and the children were flown to Rome for a special meeting with the Pope last week where she gave him a present of a tin whistle.

“He was very kind to us but what I like most was that he took our questions seriously when he answered them – sometimes adults don’t do that with children”, she said in an interview to Irish Jesuit Communications.

The book, Dear Pope Francis: The Pope Answers Letters From Children Around the Word, has now been published by Irish Messenger Publications and Loyola Press USA.

“The teacher just passed around a page and everyone just asked a question but I still didn’t know what it was for until about four months ago when my dad told me it was being sent with the letters from Europe to the Pope,” she said on her return last week.

Clara’s letter – which she beautifully illustrated herself – is carried in Irish in the book and she wrote: “A Phápa Proinsias, a chara. An airíonn tú mar Phápa gur tú athair ag an domhain iomlán? Mise le Mheas, Clara.”

The Pope responded to her question as to whether or not he liked being a dad to the whole world.

“Every priest likes to feel that he is a father; spiritual fatherhood is truly important. I feel it deeply – I couldn’t think of myself in any other way except as a father and I very much like your drawing with the big heart in which there’s a dad with two little girls. Are you the one with the teddy bear?

“Yes, Clara, I like being a dad,” he replied.

Clara, who has two younger brothers, Breandán and Mícheal, was second eldest of the 30 to meet Francis, with the children from around the world aged from 13 down to five.

She made friends with so many of them – including one seven year old Australian boy Luca, who asked the Pope: “My mum’s in heaven – will she grow angel wings?” 

“No, no, no, your mum is in heaven – beautiful, splendid and full of life. She hasn’t grown wings, she is still your mum, the person you know – but she is more radiant than ever,” responded Pope Francis.

The Pontiff also reveals so much about himself – like the fact that he cries often, he loves to dance the tango and he’s passionate about soccer.

The questions are carefully thought out and wonderfully original – but so too are the answers….“Dear Pope Francis, if you could do one miracle what would it be”.

“I would heal every child.”

The book is the brain-child of the Jesuit publishing company in Chicago, Loyola Press, headed up by Belfast born Jesuit Paul Campbell. He says the book has received extensive media coverage in the states, featuring on ABC’s Good Morning America. “And it was also in the top ten books selling on Amazon,” according to Fr Campbell.

Messenger Editor Fr Donal Neary SJ, says the Pope expresses a deep theology very simply in his responses to the huge variety of questions so typical of young imaginations.

Scoil Iognáid were only too delighted to be involved in the project from its inception; school principal Laoise Bhreathnach and all the teachers across different classes played their part. But the two teachers who co-ordinated the project were Nóirín Nic Grianna and Caoimhe Ní Fhríghil.

Clara said she would never forget her trip, her meeting – or her new friends from around the world.

“We got lots of tours and too much food but when we actually met the Pope it was amazing. We got a whole hour with him and we all got to ask him questions and he answered them properly – he thought about it and answered with what he actually believed whereas some adults wouldn’t actually do that,” she said.

Now back as a hero among her classmates at Scoil Iognáid, Clara reflected on meeting the Pope and said simply: “He’s very nice and he has a very good sense of humour.

“He is very kind and if can ever do something to change the world he probably will.”

As for her experience? “I’m really, really lucky and I’ll probably remember this for my whole life.”

Dear Pope Francis was published this week by Messenger Publications, priced at €14.99.