Happy Birthday
Pope Francis celebrates his 81st birthday with sick children
By Seàn-Patrick Lovett
Pope Francis turns 81 today
Pope Francis turns 81 years old today. He chose to celebrate
his birthday on Sunday morning by meeting with a group of children being
treated by the Pediatric Dispensary of Santa Marta in the
Vatican. Meanwhile, visitors and well-wishers from all over the worlds gathered
in St. peter’s Square at noon to pray the Angelus with him and to express their
own affection and greetings. Present in the Square were many children from Rome
who had brought along small images of the Baby Jesus for the Pope to bless.
According to tradition, these will be placed in Christmas nativity scenes in
homes around the city.
Previous Papal birthdays
Last year, Pope Francis celebrated his 80th birthday
by inviting a group of homeless people to join him for breakfast at his Santa
Marta residence. Later in the day, he celebrated Mass with the cardinals
present in Rome and quipped that a “good sense of humor helps us to get along”.
Two years ago, on December 17th, 2015, he celebrated together with a
group of young people from Italian Catholic Action. His message to them on that
occasion was to continue following a path of goodness, forgiveness, peace and
solidarity.
In 2014, Pope Francis’ 78th birthday fell on
a Wednesday and he was entertained during the General Audience by one hundred
circus performers who danced the tango for him in St. Peter’s Square. The
previous year, his 77th birthday and his first as Pope, he
chose to celebrate Mass together with homeless people whom he then invited to
join him for breakfast at the Casa Santa Marta where he lives.
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