By Katie Vasquez
Students in the Diocese of Brooklyn are putting pencil to paper to send their prayers to Rome, with love.
It’s part of a diocese-wide effort by the children of Brooklyn and Queens, to help an ailing Pope Francis.
St. Joseph Catholic Academy in Long Island City, Queens created get well cards.
“Everyone loves him. He inspires us to do good things,” Anthony Primiani, a 6th grader at the school, tells Currents News. “He dedicated his life to God, Jesus.”
“I said that I would dedicate my evening prayers to him every night, until he gets better. I also pray in the lunchroom for him and in the morning we also pray for him,” classmate Nola Lafield says of the school’s efforts to support the Holy Father from afar.
Students are banding together to help the pope at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn as well, where a wall is covered in well wishes from students in every grade.
“Pope Francis is sick and we’re going to pray for him, for him to get better,” Sophia Johnson, a 2nd grader at the Catholic academy says of her school’s part in the initiative.
At Our Lady of the Snows Catholic Academy in Floral Park, Queens, their prayers for the pontiff are proudly displayed in the school’s windows.
“I pray that Pope Francis could get better and better every single day,” Eliannie Caicedo, a 4th grader at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy, adds.
With 40 plus languages spoken in the Diocese of Immigrants, these students are not only offering comfort in English, but in several other languages as well.
As the students watch him progress, they feel God is answering their calls.
“I truly believe these prayers have been helping. And… it’s everyone’s work, because he’s been praying for us,” Olivia Bekan, a 6th grader at St Joseph Catholic Academy, explains. “We should be now giving our work back to him.”
“I feel like we’re helping, all these prayers. We’re sending them to God. And then He’s helping heal, in certain ways, through the prayer,” Camille Quezada, an 8th grader at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy, tells Currents NEws.
These students will keep praying that the Holy Father will get better soon.