While attending the Seventeenth General Chapter of the Oblates of Saint Joseph on August 31, 2018 in Rome, the Most Rev. Paul McDonnell, OSJ had a private audience with Pope Francis while at the Vatican. Fr. Paul, a native of West Pittston, serves as Pastor of Divine Mercy, Scranton, and Rector of Religious Community/Chapel of St. Joseph, Oblates of St. Joseph, Laflin.
Submitted Photo
LAFLIN – If there is any person in the world you may never meet in person, let alone see in person, it is a Catholic Pope.
If you travel to Rome to Vatican City, there’s always a chance you can see a Pope as he stands at a balcony or you may be lucky enough to see him ride through the crowds in the Popemobile, and sometimes if the Pope travels abroad, there is a chance you can see him at a location near you.
West Pittston native, the Most Rev. Paul McDonnell of the Oblates of St. Joseph and Pastor of Divine Mercy, Scranton, considers himself very lucky to have had a private audience with not one, but three Popes in his lifetime.
Through his 34-year career as a Catholic priest; Fr. McDonnell has had the honor of meeting Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, and Pope Frances.
While attending the Seventeenth General Chapter of the Oblates of St. Joseph on August 31, 2018, in Rome, the Fr. McDonnell, had a private audience with Pope Francis while at the Vatican.
Fr. McDonnell recalls his meeting with the Holy Father.
“We, of course spoke in Italian and he asked me where I was from and I told him I was from Scranton, Pennsylvania,” McDonnell said. “I told him I was the Provincial Superior of the USA Province of the Oblates of St. Joseph.”
At the time of meeting with Pope Francis, Fr. McDonnell was stepping down from the Provincial Superior position by declining to run for the post he held since 2013 and the Pope noted he did not run for the position in their conversation.
“It’s a great powerful experience and you’re in the inner chambers of the Vatican and you’re escorted up to the place where the Pope meets with groups,” recalls Fr. McDonnell. “It was so nice and there was a group of us Oblates, and we were all able to meet with him and he spoke to us as a group. He gave us a little talk and then we met with him individually.”
“You know, it wasn’t rushed at all, he was very, very nice and he was very friendly,” Fr. McDonnell continued. “He was still in pretty good health too, because we are talking seven-years ago. He was in good humor with us as well.”
Fr. McDonnell met Pope John Paul II numerous times including having many conversations with him. He met with Pope Benedict XVI in 2006.
“It was great to meet all three Popes in my lifetime,” Fr. McDonnell admitted.
Fr. McDonnell believes Pope Francis did a great leader in overseeing 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide.
“I think he did a really a wonderful job in walking a very delicate tightrope between being orthodox to church doctrine and all of the rules and so forth,” Fr. McDonnell explained. “But yet he also wanted to make sure that everybody was included, that people were not marginalized. People were not ostracized. He wanted to make sure everyone felt included.” Fr. McDonnell continues, “I think his approach was very much Christ like. Jesus never said to anybody, get your life in order and then come back and see me. We live in a very confusing world dealing with homosexual marriages, with transsexuals, and we’re dealing with people that are not married in the church and are married multiple times. We don’t we don’t live in a black and white world, we live in a very gray world.” Fr. McDonnell believes Pope Francis wanted the church to meet people where they were and bring them to the truth of Christ.
