St. Rose of Lima Academy Grade 2

The students in Mrs. Carangelo’s second grade class anxiously awaited the arrival of Pope Francis to America. While they waited, they looked at maps and charted the course our Holy Father would take to get from Rome to Cuba and then the USA! The students learned about the process of how a new pope is elected and discussed how Pope Francis must have felt when he discovered he was our new Pope!

With each city he visited, from Washington DC to New York City, and then on to Philadelphia, Pope Francis asked over and over again, “Pray for me.”

With that simple request the students began writing…beautiful, simple prayers to God for Pope Francis.

“Please help Pope Francis to do big things and to help the poor and hungry.”

“Please help Pope Francis to stay with us on earth for a very long time. Help him to speak in languages that everyone can understand.”

“Please make Pope Francis go to every place and tell everyone to love one another.”

“I hope he’ll live a great life and be safe and protected to teach others about You and Your Son.”

Each child then created a beautiful picture to go with his or her prayer. When everything was collected and organized, a class book entitled DEAR GOD Messages to Heaven, Our Prayers for Pope Francis, was created!

The children were so excited to take this loving prayer book home to share with each of their families. They promised to pray for Pope Francis each night just as he asked us to.

“We love you Pope Francis!”

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