In April Brother Biagio Conte took off from Palermo in a fit of pique because his homeless brothers were being mistreated. He decided to walk to Rome carrying a wooden cross. One of his faithful followers walked with him. When the pope heard that Biagio was nearing Rome, he scurried to clear a spot on his appointment calendar to make room for Biagio. This morning Biagio reached Rome and, according to this report in today's Giornale di Sicilia, Pope Francis met with him and Biagio's right-hand man, Father Pino Vitrano, informally for a half hour at one of his rooms at Santa Marta. ( Who was running the three urban homeless shelters, a constant state of emergency, while they were gone, I wonder?) The meeting began at 12:30 and lasted a half hour, during which time Pope Francis showed himself to be "humble and close to the poor", as Fra Biagio recounts in the video published by some volunteers of Conte's Mission of Hope and Charity
( Missione di Speranza e Carita`) who waited outside St. Peter's Basilica for Brothers Biagio and Pino to return from their encounter..
"He stupefied us from every point of view," said Father Pino Vitrano. "Pope Francis is truly the pope of the poor and of all of us. He showed all his humility and profundity, dedicating to us a friendly meeting, without formalities. He gave us a great sense of serenity and peace."
( Missione di Speranza e Carita`) who waited outside St. Peter's Basilica for Brothers Biagio and Pino to return from their encounter..
"He stupefied us from every point of view," said Father Pino Vitrano. "Pope Francis is truly the pope of the poor and of all of us. He showed all his humility and profundity, dedicating to us a friendly meeting, without formalities. He gave us a great sense of serenity and peace."