April 30, 2025 Across the North Country, individuals who had opportunities to meet Pope Francis or attend a papal Mass or audience, and those who were touched by the Holy Father’s words and actions spent reflecting on his impact in the week following his passing. DEB MULLIN “I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to witness a part of our Catholic history by attending the Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at Vatican City,” she said. “As we waited in anticipation for Mass to begin, I thought about how I had prayed every day since Pope Francis first entered the hospital that he would recover and be able to attend Easter Mass.” Mullin said she was worried that she experienced some guilt around those prayers. “I questioned if I was praying for Pope Francis’s recovery or more for myself – so that I would be able to see him in person,” she reflected. Despite those feelings, Mullin said experiencing St. Peter’s Basilica and Square and receiving a blessing from Pope Francis erased her feelings of guilt. “St. Peter’s Basilica’s sheer size, detailed architecture, the statues throughout it, the Dome, and the Apostle’s that line the facade of the Basilica literally took my breath away,” she said. “So, as I look back on my visit to St. Peter’s Basilica and Square, I have two take aways: First, an awe-inspiring experience of being at Easter Mass that will forever be etched in my mind. Second, because of Pope Francis’s love for all his people, and because he demonstrated such selflessness in making an appearance to give us his final blessing, I felt he wouldn’t be upset if I was praying more for myself to be able to see him in person than for his recovery.” Mullin said she was also able to see the Domus Sanctae Marthae, commonly referred to as Casa Santa Marta, a guest house where Pope Francis resided from the time he was elected to the time of his passing. “I asked our guide if any other pope had ever resided there,” she recalled. “He said, ‘No. Pope Francis was the first.’” FATHER CHRISTOPHER J. LOOBY “It took months of planning,” Father Looby said. “In February of 2017, Bishop LaValley wrote a letter to the Vatican requesting permission for me to concelebrate Mass with the Holy Father. A few weeks later, that permission was granted – faxed back to our Chancery with instructions I had to follow precisely. I was to report to the gates of the Vatican early – 7 a.m., I believe – for a 7:30 Mass at the pope’s private chapel at Casa Santa Marta.” Looby didn’t tell the pilgrims traveling with him about his plans to see the Holy Father. “The morning of the Mass, I quietly slipped out of the hotel, trying not to draw attention,” Father Looby said. “One of the pilgrims in my group was already sitting in the lobby and asked where I was headed. I had to just smile and keep walking. It was hard keeping such a sacred secret.” After checking in vesting – putting on liturgical vestments – for Mass, Father Looby and a group of priests made their way to a chapel, where Father Looby had a front-row seat. “And then Pope Francis entered,” Father Looby recalled. “During the homily, he stood just a few feet from me, preaching in Italian. I didn’t understand a word, but it didn’t matter. I was absolutely transfixed. It was as if time stood still. I kept thinking: I am sitting at the feet of Peter, listening to him preach the Gospel. There was a quiet, intimate simplicity to the liturgy – but also an immense spiritual weight. Standing with Pope Francis during the Eucharistic Prayer, speaking the same sacred words, breaking the same Bread, was almost overwhelming. I felt both very small and deeply honored.” FATHER SCOTT A. BELINA “It was the final Mass at the giant gathering of all the pilgrims and the pope,” Father Belina recalled. “What happened was Father Bryan (Stitt) and I had gone up to the front to get our vestments and prepare for Mass. We were sitting up front with all the priests. It came time for Communion, and they had probably 1,000 people with Ciboria distributing Communion. We went trying to find where the priests were receiving Communion. At one point, someone came up and put a Ciborium in my hand. I started distributing Communion.” After all pilgrims had an opportunity to receive the Eucharistic Lord, Father Belina had “quite a few hosts left over.” The priest started working his way toward the altar, front and center of the gathered assembly. “This was my ticket to get as close to the pope as possible,” Father Belina said. “I was going to return the Blessed Sacrament to whatever Tabernacle was set up, and I was going to see how close to the Holy Father I could get.” Father Belina said Pope Francis emerged from a door with cardinals and security personnel all around him. Father Belina said his near encounter with the pope was “the closest we had gotten the whole time” to the Holy Father during the World Youth Day trip, at least according to his memory of events. Father Belina was able to keep the ceramic ciborium used at the World Youth Day Mass. JESSE SOVIE “I still remember how busy the streets were prior to his arrival,” Sovie said. “I also remember there being so much joy, hope and enthusiasm among the many people lining the streets, in hopes of getting a good spot to watch Pope Francis drive by. As I reflect on that moment, I can identify that there seems to be a decrease in the amount of joy, hope and enthusiasm in our current culture. In a time where we seem so divided on everything from politics to sports teams, to even which social media site is considered the ‘best’ on,’ it seems as though we have lost our ability to see Christ in our fellow man.” Sovie said he was inspired by Pope Francis’ commitment to those in need. “While some may have disagreed in the personal politics of the late Pontiff, no one can deny his firm and outspoken advocacy for the poor, the marginalized, and the destitute in our society,” he said. “The mission Jesus embarked on and left to Peter, as well as all of Peter’s successors, remains today. It is a special mission left not for just popes, bishops or priests. Each baptized Christian is called to join this mission. It’s time to dust off our eyes, pluck out the logs in them which prevent our ability to see Christ in each person. It is time for us to renew our faith, our sense of joy, hope and enthusiasm in living out our daily lives as a ‘Christ led, Christ fed and hope filled’ people. I pray that this joy, hope and enthusiasm is contagious in spreading to others as we are called to spread the gospel message.” FATHER LEAGON J. CARLIN “In both these opportunities, I was struck by the reality of the Office of the Pope, that upon election, the man ceases to be himself, that instead he is a visible figure of the presence of the Church in a physical way,” Father Carlin said. “In a special way, at World Youth Day, as we all trudged in often difficult conditions for many miles, and slept in a field all night, we knew we were amongst Catholics, but in the morning, when the pope arrived for Mass, we knew then that we were with the Church. This brought a physical confirmation to Our Lord’s promise that the Church will never be overtaken by darkness, no matter how complex and confusing things become. “As St. Ambrose of Milan wrote, ‘Where Peter is, there is the Church. And where the Church is, no death is there, but life eternal.’” |
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