In a brief and casual meeting with Filipino bishops attending the ongoing Synod on the family at the Vatican, the Pope again expressed his admiration for the Filipino faith.
“The Holy Father said ‘I have special admiration for the Filipinos,’” Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma quoted the pontiff as saying. “Basically, he is taking us as people of great faith.” Daet Bishop Gilbert Garcera said the Pope also recalled with “great happiness” the “Lolo Kiko” Filipinos nickname that Filipinos fondly gave him.
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“He was really laughing and was so happy about it,” Garcera said.
According to Palma, it created a good impression on the Pope how elderly are held in high regard in the Philippines.
“It’s a sign that I am appreciated. I am loved in the Philippines,” Pope Francis said, according to the Cebu prelate. (Roy Lagarde / CBCPNews)