A young relative of those who died in the devastating fire in Carrickmines, outside Dublin, has been treated like a celebrity after being blessed by Pope Francis.
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And the Pope held up the example of the Blessed Zeffirino Giménez Malla as a model of life and religiosity.
Thomas (27) and Sylvia Connors (25) and their three children, Jim (5), Christy (2) and five-month-old baby Mary died in the blaze.
During the audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI hall, musicians played traditional songs that also reflected the various influences of the native cultures of the lands they live in like, Spain, Ireland and Eastern Europe.
William, who suffers from a lung disease, was with his mother Margaret O’Leary Connors among the thousands of Roma and Travellers for the special audience with the pontiff in the Vatican when they got a personal greeting.
“We do not want to have to witness any more family tragedies in which children die from cold or are burnt in fires” he said.
“The time has come to uproot centuries-old prejudices, preconceptions and reciprocal diffidence that often are at the base of discrimination, racism and xenophobia”.
Speaking on RTE Radio One, she added the relatives “appreciated the message” the pontiff sent to the funerals of the victims.
She said: “And we hope the Irish Government listens to the Pope’s words”.
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And today’s audience with Pope Francis is the culmination of their journey which has been organized to mark the 50th anniversary of the first Papal visit to an worldwide gypsy camp which took place on the outskirts of the Eternal City.
