Pope sends greetings to Portuguese girl suffering serious illness
By Salvatore Cernuzio
Edna Rodriques, a 17-year-old Portuguese woman, has suffered from a severe illness for the past eight years.
“The doctor said that he does not know when I will meet Jesus, but that it will happen soon,” she wrote to Pope Francis in a letter she addressed to him from the hospital in June 2023, ahead of World Youth Day in Lisbon.
Despite the prognosis, Edna still endures her great suffering and carries on with the same serenity that moved Pope Francis.
On Friday, the Pope greeted the young woman once again in a short video recorded by Cardinal Américo Manuel Alves Aguiar, Bishop of Setúbal (Portugal), who was one of the organizers of the WYD.
The Pope’s greeting
“Edna, I remember you,” the Pope said at the beginning of the video clip. “I remember that you had offered all your illness and your pain for Youth Day. Thank you for that, and thank you for continuing to fight. Strive ahead, continue!”
The Holy Father urged Edna, “Continue to pray for so many young people who need strength to move forward. Do not forget that you are one of the pillars of Youth Day. May God bless you; may Our Lady watch over you, and don’t forget to pray for me. Ciao!”
Last year's exchange of letters and videos
Last year, Edna had signed up for World Youth Day in August in Lisbon, in her native Portugal. It was a chance to be close to the Pope, who was so “important to me and my family," but more a hope than a realistic expectation, knowing as she did that her physical strength would not allow her to go.
And, in fact, it turned out that the young woman was unable to attend the event with her peers from St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish on the outskirts of the Portuguese capital and other young people from five continents.
“When I learned that the Day would be held in Portugal, I was very happy, because every time I see the Pope speak on television, I feel good, as if I had no illness that would prevent me from participating in WYD,” she wrote in her letter to Pope Francis.
The Holy Father promptly replied to her with a one-minute video message in which he said “Thank you” six times. He thanked her for her “tenderness” and for “the peace” in her heart, which, he said, is “like a seed planted in the hearts of all of us who see you and all those who speak with you.”
“I am accompanying you on this journey you are on. I accompany you and I know that you will be well received,” Pope Francis added. “I accompany you by praying for you, praying with you, and looking at Jesus, who is always waiting for us.”
A message for a 107-year-old Portuguese woman
In a separate video message recorded by Cardinal Aguiar, the Pope also offered the assurance of his prayers to Maria da Conceição Brito Mendonça, a 107-year-old Portuguese woman born on the day of the Fatima apparitions, 13 May 1917, whom he met in the Lisbon Nunciature and who brought him a Rosary as a gift.
“Stay strong and keep going. Don't slow down, continue to pray Rosaries, to support the Church with your prayer and your joy,” the Pope told her.
The Bishop of Setúbal, who was created Cardinal last September, then asked the Pope if he could also send a few words to the many young men and women who participated in the Portuguese WYD and are already preparing for the next one, set to take place in Seoul, South Korea.
“They tell me that you young people must be provoked; otherwise, you fall asleep. No! Don't fall asleep, ok? Don't fall asleep,” the Pope said.
“Panama, Lisbon, Seoul—it's a journey for you,” he adds. “It's a journey you are on, and it’s an interesting journey that leaves its mark. It is important to leave traces in life—to leave something that you have done. You can say, ‘A young man passed through here and left this mark.’ Reflect a little on this: What footprints have I left in life? And strive ahead; don’t be discouraged.”
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