A few fioretti from the previous Mission conclave, in 2013, which led to the election of Pope Francis.
In 2013 after the resignation of Benedict XVI I realized that the election of a pope, if it was the result of a human vote, that of the cardinals, should more than any other election be inspired by the Holy Spirit. When I saw on the internet that I could receive the name of one of the cardinals in order to pray for the Holy Spirit to enlighten him in his vote, I immediately asked to take part in these prayers. I received the name of an Argentinean cardinal, José Bergoglio. I asked about him and prayed. On March 13, 2013, my daughter, who was working in her maid’s room on Rue du Montparnasse in Paris, called me: “Mom, we have a new Pope: all the church bells around me are ringing!”. I turned on the radio and shortly afterwards learned that the cardinal I had entrusted to the Holy Spirit had been chosen. Great emotion, and a prayer of thanksgiving. For the next twelve years, I had the feeling that the choice of this pope was a very good thing for the Church and for the world, so I’m ready to start praying for a cardinal again!
Anne-Claude
We each received a cardinal in prayer. We went on the Internet to see their photos and learn about their countries. I received Cardinal Bergoglio from Argentina. I prayed that he would be elected Pope, even though my parents always told me: “No, you just have to pray to support him in his vote”. Late afternoon on March 13, while waiting for the smoke, I said, “The smoke will be white and it will be Cardinal Bergoglio!” Dad replied: “No, Thérèse, don’t dream! At 7.06pm, the white smoke came out. The name of the cardinal who had become pope was called out, and I shouted: “It’s mine! It’s my cardinal from Buenos Aires! My grandmother, who was there that evening, looked at my dad in amazement, saying: “How does your daughter know the name of this cardinal?…” Mission Conclave was great!
Thérèse, 11 years old and severely disabled