International

From email to marriage: the day Pope Francis married a Uruguayan couple

The unexpected recovery of little Sara after being sprayed with holy water while hospitalized was the kick-off of the email exchange that made it possible for Pope Francis to marry Uruguayans Noelia Franco and Omar Caballero by surprise, in the Vatican and in front of his daughters.

September 19, 2018 was not just another day for the Caballero Franco family, who, to this day, are not clear why the Supreme Pontiff decided, responding to an email, to receive them in the private audience in which, unexpectedly, he officiated his marriage by the church and shared with them “the secret of the happy and lasting marriage”.

This is assured in dialogue with EFE by the mother of five daughters who dates back to 2014, when, shortly after being born, Sara – the youngest – had to be admitted to an Intensive Treatment Center for the VRS virus and applied a few drops of water blessed by Francis that a friend had brought from the Vatican.

“With my husband we said that we were going to put it on and that if he was saved we were going to go to the Vatican to thank him and it was like that. We put the droplets on her and automatically she entered the exit curve and came out,” says who, before the little girl turned two years old, traveled with her to Rome to thank her in person.

From that meeting he returned with “a lot of holy water” and rosaries, but also with the earring that his husband and other daughters knew him; so he let his secretary know in an email in which he mentioned that he wanted him to bless his 24-year marriage, because they had never been able to officiate him for the church because he did not have money “even for the rings.”

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“They answered our email and we started in Rome. It was all crazy, because we only had an email, which could have been someone’s joke: ‘I’ll wait for you at eight on September 19 9:15 at Casa Santa Marta’,” he says about the answer by which, after going through security checks, they ended up waiting for him in a room.

“At one point they make us stop, priests begin to pass and he appears with his arms like this – raised -, he shouts ‘Uruguayans!’ and there we loosened (the nerves) (…) He was a grandfather sitting with the family, talking about things about Uruguay, about Argentina,” he recalls the talk that gave rise to the unexpected question about whether they wanted to be married by him.

“We were tough and a great joke was sent. He said ‘the hare must be grabbed when it is locked up’ (…) and there he married us,” says who explains that, after his general audience, he talked again and dismissed them with some words that they still cherish: “He grabs our hand and tells us ‘I’m going to tell you the secret of happy and lasting marriage: with you, bread and onion’ and there he left.”

Marked both by that message, which they interpret as a reminder of being together “in good times and in bad times” and by the closeness of a Francisco whom they last saw last September, when he blessed the marriage of another of his daughters, the Caballero Francos only have left, to “comply with him”, “thank him”.

“He was a pope who was not of this world. He already did what he had to do, he faced what he had to face and leaves us with a new world now to debate what we can solve,” Franco emphasizes about the first Latin American pontiff, whose death, far from crying, his family took with happiness because, he says, “he is today on the side of Jesus.”

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Without being clear why he was so generous, to the point of giving his approval to the giant mandala of tribute to the Abrahamic religions that today the family builds on the land of its tourist enterprise, also designed in honor of the Argentine, Franco insists that all that remains is to “tell the story”.

“We know we have to tell their story, our story. Not only to Catholics, to Christians, but to the people who approach us to listen. Many people come to tell them this and it’s what we have left to do,” he concludes.

International

Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.

During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.

“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.

“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”

Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.

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On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.