The meal was simple: spaghetti, coleslaw and asparagus. But across the table from Emanuel Pires sat someone extraordinary—Pope John Paul II.
Pires, a 22-year-old U of T architecture student, was one of 14 young pilgrims invited to lunch with the head of the Catholic Church during World Youth Day celebrations last week.
On the way over to the lunch on Strawberry Island, a Basilian Fathers retreat in Lake Simcoe, Pires remembers talking to the other lunch guests about their faith and the extraordinary man who embodies its leadership.
“It definitely affirmed my faith,” Pires said. “It’s interesting to see how much of a normal person he is. He is given an iconic status. You almost view him as unapproachable because even getting a close glimpse of him is pretty hard.”
Pires said that behind the veil of ceremony and tradition, the pontiff is surprisingly down-to-earth. “It was nice to see how he’s a normal guy and how much he does believe in the faith and how much young people are important to him.”
The 82-year-old Pope mostly listened as the pilgrims talked about their faith and their experiences at World Youth Day.
“For most of the lunch, he just paid attention to what everyone said…He was getting information from us. He didn’t speak to any one person for very long.”
Pires said he was chosen to meet the Pope because of his work with a Catholic newspaper and his involvement with his church.
“I’ve been with the Catholic Register for two years and Father Tom Rosica called the paper and asked if there would be someone who would like to go. That’s how I was chosen.”
Rosica was the organizer for last week’s World Youth Day events, which attracted more than 200,000 participants from around the world.
Photograph by Simon Turnbull
