Pope Francis Visits Former Priests With Families in Rome

Pope Francis, on Nov. 11, meets with families of seven ex-priests in Rome

Photo courtesy: lastampa.it/

Pope Francis greets a child of an ex-priest

Photo courtesy: L'Osservatore Romano via CNA

On the last Mercy Friday, on November 11, during the Jubilee of Mercy, Pope Francis met with seven young ex-priests who married and raised families. This unprecedented gesture of the Pope came as a demonstration of mercy.

On that afternoon, the Pope left his residence, St. Martha's House, in the Vatican and went to Ponte di Nona in the eastern suburb of Rome. Seven former priests with wives and children lived there in an apartment building. 

A Vatican communique said that Pope Francis wanted "to offer a sign of closeness and affection to these young men who have made a choice not often shared by their brother priests and families," reports the Catholic News Agency (CNA). 

For more, you may read the following:

• On last Mercy Friday, Francis meets men who left the priesthood (Nov. 11, 2016)
• Francis visits seven former priests, now married, and their families (Nov. 11, 2016)