UNa tiny shape wrapped in a blue dress captured everyone’s attention during the funeral of Pope Francis. While the crowd of purple, he moved in procession to give the last farewell to Bergoglio, She stayed firm, like a sentry, The look fixed on the coffin. The green backpack still on the shoulders, almost ready to start again for a new mission. Sister Geneviève Jeanningros moved everyone by challenging every conventionremaining motionless for long minutes near the coffin of the one who considered not only a pontiff, but a travel companion.
Sister Geneviève Jeanningros, the small giant on the Roman suburbs
But who is this woman who dared to break the rigid Vatican ceremonial? In Ostia everyone knows the French religious that, in spite of its 82 years, He transformed a corner of the Luna Park into a lighthouse of hope. It belongs to the “small sisters of Jesus”, but there is nothing small in his work. Great was his vision that He knew how to see beauty and dignity where others saw only degradation and marginality.
From Argentina to Italy, a friendship that challenges time
The link between this religious and Jorge Mario Bergoglio has its roots in distant times, when he who would become Pope was still in Argentina. The tragedy of the desaparecidos united them in a common battle for human rights. A relationship that has been consolidated over the years, to the point that the pontiff jokingly called “my rebel”, for that unique ability to bring mess in the Vatican halls, presenting itself with its unusual follow -up of forgotten souls.
Sister Genevieve Jeanningros, the Pope’s friend, always engaged with the last, in particular the people of the circus who made Francesco (ANSA) also known
At 82, he manages a monastery between the lights of the rides
No silent cloister, no imposing ecclesiastical structure. The reign of Sister Geneviève Jeanningros has been a modest caravan for years flanked by an improvised chapel, in heart of the Ostia amusement park. The noise of the Russian mountains and the festive shouts of the children, they acted as a soundtrack to his daily mission. Here, together with the consumer Anna Amelia, he created an unconditional reception space.
The missionary of the existence of the influence
From this improbable headquarters, The religious has woven a network of solidarity that embraces the most fragile communities: from the nomadic world of the circus, to the transgender people who live on the margins of society. His was not a mission of simple charitybut of profound recognition of human dignity. He taught the catechism to the little ones, of course, but he also listened without judgment the stories of those who were rejected everywhere.
The lawyer of the invisibles
During the 2020 health crisis, when the Lockdown deprived of every resource who lived in expedients, It was she who made the spokesperson for the desperation of the transgender people of the Roman coast. He did not hesitate to knock on Vatican doors, obtaining that the pontiff sent concrete aid through the Cardinal alms.
The last blessing between the rides
There Visit of Francesco in Ostia in July 2024 will remain in the memory: a Pope who, despite the age and commitments, returns to a Luna Park to bless a protective Madonna of the itinerant ones. And it wasn’t the first time: Already in 2015, Bergoglio had surprised everyone with his presence among the attractions of the park. A gesture that says a lot about the value that attributed to the silent work of this religious.
The philosophy of a countercurrent life
“The heart must remain wide open for everyone», this The principle that guided every step by Sister Genevièvea profound belief that resonated perfectly with Pope Francis’ message. An outgoing church, capable of dirtying your hands, of going to the existential suburbs, of embracing without reserve. In the presence of the coffin, That little French nun was not only crying a friend. He watched the symbol of a revolution that changed the face of the contemporary Church. And in his firm gaze, The silent promise of continuing to walk on the road traced together.
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