"Did My Dad, Who Didn't Believe in God, Go to Heaven?" The Pope's Answer to the Question

Pope Francis Hospitalized with Pneumonia
Content Shared as People Pray for His Recovery

Pope Francis has been diagnosed with pneumonia and is receiving inpatient treatment, while in his homeland of Argentina, videos that reveal his 'warm character' are being shared as people pray for his recovery.

Pope Francis hugging a boy who is crying. YouTube capture

On the 8th (local time), a video showing Pope Francis receiving a question from a boy in the backyard of a church in Italy in 2018 was actively shared on social media platforms in Argentina. In the video, a child named Emanuele stands in front of a microphone, trying to say something to the Pope but soon covers his face and begins to cry sadly. The Pope embraced the crying Emanuele and comforted him. When the child whispered something to the Pope, Pope Francis asked for Emanuele's permission and then publicly shared his question with the audience.

Emanuele asked, "My father was a good man and he had all four of us children baptized, including me. But my father did not believe in God and recently passed away. Did my father go to heaven?" The Pope responded, "It is truly beautiful that a son says his father was a good man," and asked, "Do you think God would abandon a good person? Would God abandon His children?" He then explained to the boy, "This is God's answer: God must have been proud of your father, and even though he was an atheist, he had all four children baptized, so God must have been pleased."

A person praying next to the statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Gemelli Hospital, where Pope Francis was admitted for treatment in Rome, Italy. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News.

In addition, various contents related to Pope Francis are actively being produced and shared recently in Argentina, his homeland. Prayer meetings and religious events wishing for the Pope's recovery are also being held in many places. The 88-year-old Pope Francis has been hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli Hospital since the 14th of last month due to pneumonia. This is the longest hospitalization since his election in 2013. Although the Pope experienced several episodes of acute respiratory distress and other crises, the Vatican announced on the 8th that the Pope's clinical condition has been stable over the past few days. It was also reported that the Pope prayed in the special chapel at the hospital in the morning and alternated between work and rest in the afternoon.