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“SO WHO’S GOING to be the next pope?”
It’s perhaps not a conversation typical of young people, but there was little else talked about aboard the red-eye flight from Dublin to Rome this morning which was full of teenagers.
The reason for this is that their long-planned pilgrimage to see the canonisation of the Church’s first millennial saint, the teenager Carlo Acutis, has now turned into an unexpected farewell to Pope Francis.
Hundreds of thousands of people were expected to flock to St Peter’s for Acutis’s canonisation, which had been scheduled for this weekend.
Now they will be joined by the faithful attending Francis’s funeral.
James McLoughlin, the youth ministry director for the Diocese of Clogher, was among those in the departure gate headed for Rome at Dublin Airport this morning.
The diocese takes in all of County Monaghan, most of Fermanagh and portions of Tyrone, Donegal, Louth and Cavan.
He was travelling with his wife and his son, Michael, and their original intention in coming to Rome was to attend the now postponed canonisation.
While he’s visiting in a personal capacity and not as a youth director, McLoughlin said this role had taken him to Brazil in 2013 for Francis’s trip as part of World Youth Day.
McLoughlin also met Francis in October 2023 during a school pilgrimage he had organised.
“He was a very profound speaker with a huge heart and love for young people,” said McLoughlin, “he wanted them to know they were welcome in the Church.
“It’s going to be a big change and hopefully whoever comes after him, inspired by the Holy Spirit, will carry on with a papacy that reaches out to the peripheries.”
McLoughlin last year organised for a relic to Acutis to visit his diocese and over 6,000 people came to see it over a two-day period.
“Travelling to Rome originally was a celebration of Carlo’s life, and so it is now for Francis,” said McLoughlin.
“It’s a celebration, though obviously one tinged with sadness.
“But old people die, he was sick, and it was really beautiful so see the events of Easter Sunday – him coming onto the balcony of St Peter’s and then getting a final tour of the Square in the popemobile – a really fitting end to his papacy.”
Father Michael Toomey and his group of pilgrims also had their plans changed at the last minute.
He was originally due to come to Rome to act as a spiritual guide for young Irish people attending the canonisation.
“In my own parish, we have a statue to Carlo in Ardfinnan in Co Tipperary and young people are very interested in his lifestyle, how a young teenager of 15 who was into the PlayStation and football and computing is now becoming a saint.”
On Monday, after Francis’s death, Fr Toomey spoke to his Bishop and it was decided he would still come to Rome – his group came to the same decision.
Fr Toomey celebrated Mass with Pope Francis in Rome in 2018 and said his “life and legacy shows the humbleness of the man”.
He said he has been “astounded” at the lines of people queuing up to see Francis in St Peter’s Basilica.
St Peter’s had been due to close at midnight on Wednesday, but remained open until 5.30am and re-opened at 7am to deal with the crowds.
“Our programme for the group has had to change dramatically and we’re working on a programme around the funeral tomorrow,” said Fr Toomey.
This altered programme will see the group heading for the Vatican at 5am tomorrow so that they can get into Francis’s funeral.
He said some of the group have already insisted they will return to Rome for Acutis’s canonisation.
“They still decided to come because of the historic nature of the event.
“So while the group is saddened the canonisation isn’t happening, they’re still humbled and honoured to be here for Pope Francis’s funeral.”
Fr Toomey also hopes to be back in Rome for the canonisation but noted that he runs seven churches over four dioceses.
“It depends on whether I can get cover to come over again whenever it is.”
The canonisation had been scheduled to take place during the Jubilee of Teenagers – part of the overall Jubilee Year of the Church – and a lot of teenagers are in Rome as a result
“For them to witness the funeral will be something they’ll treasure for the rest of their lives, which in a way is a blessing for them,” said Fr Toomey.
When asked how it felt to have that canonisation turn into a farewell to Francis, Fr Toomey reflected on the disruption death causes to ordinary people’s lives.
“Anytime there’s a death in the family, there’s always upheaval and changes to plans – there’s always flights cancelled, things postponed.
“The death of Pope Francis magnified that across the world, because I’m sure many of the world leaders who’ll be in Rome tomorrow weren’t planning to be here at the start of the week.
“So it’s like any death or funeral – people’s lives have to be adjusted and that is something many of us here in Rome have had to go through,” said Fr Toomey.
“We were coming for a canonisation, now we’re here for a funeral. The canonisation will happen later, but the funeral will only happen this Saturday.
“So that’s part of a grieving process for everybody, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, in coming out to celebrate the life of Pope Francis.”
Diarmuid Pepper will be reporting from Rome throughout the weekend – you can follow him on X here.
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