Testimonies from the previous Mission conclave, in 2013 – the conclave that elected Pope Francis.
In 2013 when Benedict XVI resigned, I realized that electing a pope should – more than any other election – be led by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit working through the human vote of the cardinals. When I saw that I could sign up online to receive the name of one of the cardinals, to pray for the Holy Spirit to inspire him in his vote, I didn’t hesitate. I received the name of a cardinal from Argentina, José Bergoglio. I found out some information about him and started to pray. On March 13, 2013, my daughter, who was working in her studio apartment 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 I learned that the cardinal I was praying to the Holy Spirit for had been chosen. It was a very emotional moment, and I gave thanks to God. During the twelve years that followed, I felt that the choice of this pope was an excellent thing for the Church and for the world, so I am ready to start praying for a cardinal again!
Anne-Claude
“We each received a cardinal in prayer. We went online to see their photos and find out where they were from. I was assigned Cardinal Bergoglio from Argentina. I prayed that he would be elected pope, even though my parents kept telling me, “No, you just have to pray to support him in his vote.” On March 13, in the late afternoon while waiting for the smoke, I said, “The smoke will be white and it will be Cardinal Bergoglio!” My dad replied, “No, Thérèse, stop dreaming!” At 7:06 p.m., white smoke appeared. They announced the name of the cardinal who had been elected pope, and I shouted, “It’s him! It’s my cardinal from Buenos Aires!” My grandmother, who was there that evening, looked at my dad in amazement and said, “How does your daughter know the name of that cardinal? … Mission Conclave was great!”
Thérèse, 11 years old and severely disabled