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Every evening at 8 p.m., Father Gabriel Romanelli of Holy Family Church in Gaza City prepared to receive a call from Vatican City. The calls from Pope Francis — checking in onhow those huddled insideGaza's lone Catholic Church were coping during the war — were 'a singular expression of his love' that the the priest says gave people a sign of hope.
Father Gabriel Romanelli says pontiff sometimes called multiple times a day when bombings were very bad
Adrienne Arsenault, Yasmine Hassan · CBC News
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Pope Francis called this Gaza church almost every day until his death 5 days ago Duration 3:55
On Monday night, following the news of the death of Pope Francis, Father Gabriel Romanelli's cellphone did not ring at 8 p.m. as it normally would.
This was normally the time the pontiff would call the priest at the Holy Family Church in Gaza City every night throughoutthe warto check onhow those huddled insideGaza's lone Catholic church were coping with a devastating war.
In an interview with CBC News chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenaulton Monday, Romanelli recalled how children in the churchwould run over to listen in when he would take the Pope's calls with his vice rector, Father Youssef Assaad. He says theywould cheer"The Pope!Viva Papa!" (Long live the Pope!) and askfor his blessings.
Usually, he said, when the phone rang at 8 p.m., people knew it was time for "Santo Padre," referring to the Italian phrase meaningHoly Father.
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So on Monday, when the Vatican announced that Pope Francis had died at age 88, Gaza'stiny Christian community gathered at the church to mourn and prayin his honour.
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Pope repeated ceasefire call in final address
In addition to his nightly communicationswith Palestinian Christians in Gaza, Pope Francis also made public comments about theIsrael-Hamas war.
It began after the Oct. 7, 2023,Hamas-led attack on Israel, whichleft 1,200 Israelis dead and some 250 people taken hostageinGaza, according to Israeli tallies. More than50,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel'sresponding onslaught onthe Gaza Strip, Gaza Health Ministry officials say.
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In November 2023, Francis met separately with Israeli relatives of hostages held by Hamas, as well as Palestinians with family in Gaza, and soon after told followers he had heard directly how "both sides weresuffering" in the conflict.
During his 2024 Easter message,heissued an appeal for peace, called for the release of hostages and forhumanitarian aidto reach Palestinians,as well as an immediate ceasefire.
InNovember the same year,in the bookHope Never Disappoints: Pilgrims Toward a Better World, by journalist Hernán Reyes Alcaide, Francis calledfor an investigation into whether Israel's ground offensive in Gaza constituteda genocide.
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Sunday — the day before he died —in his final address from the balcony overlooking St. Peter's Square,Francis again called for a ceasefire in Gaza,condemnedthe "deplorable humanitarian situation,"and expressedhis "closeness to the sufferings of Christians in Palestine and Israel and to all the Israeli people and the Palestinian people."
A fervent advocate of interfaith relations, he also urged Hamas to release the dozens of Israeli hostages it continues tohold and condemned growing global antisemitism.
Nightlycalls gave people'sign of hope'
But as the war was ramping up in Gaza in 2023, Romanelli said he was surprised by what was the first of many calls he would receive from Vatican City.
Soon, though, they found common ground.
Because both he and Pope Francis are originally from Buenos Aires,Romanelli saysthey would converse in Spanish, with the pontiff asking aboutthe situation in Gaza,how the people were doing in the midst of the war, and everyday thingslike if they had enough food and what they had eaten that day.
"It was a singular expression of his love, his concern. A real concern for the good of all and a sign of the good shepherd," he said. "People feel abandoned, but the call of the Pope gave a very hard sign of hope."
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On the darker days of the war, when the bombing was very bad, Romanelli says Pope Francis would call "three, four, five times on the same day."
Though headmits he isn't entirely sure why Francistook it upon himself to make the nightly calls, Romanelli says they brought much needed comfort to him and his small congregation in Gaza City.
The last call he received from Pope Francis was on Saturday, when he said the Pope spoke a bit of Arabic as he thanked the priestsfor their service and prayers.
"He told us, 'Thank you —shukran—for your service, for your prayers.' "
And as 8 p.m. came and went on Monday night,Romanelli sat in his office in the quiet of the church, reflectingon how he felt.
"We are convinced that he is in heaven," he said. "Now, we can call him at any time."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adrienne Arsenault
Senior Correspondent
Emmy Award-winning journalist Adrienne Arsenault co-hosts The National. Her investigative work on security has seen her cross Canada and pursue stories across the globe. Since joining CBC in 1991, her postings have included Vancouver, Washington, Jerusalem and London.
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With files from Mohamed El Saife, The Associated Press and Reuters
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