On the top of each letter, Francis might write "You know what to do" or "Go find them" or "Go talk to them."Īnd so Don Corrado, as he likes to be called, hits the streets of Rome and beyond. Krajewski gets his marching orders each morning: A Vatican gendarme goes from the Vatican hotel where Francis lives to Krajewski's office across the Vatican gardens, bringing a bundle of letters that the pope has received from the faithful asking for help. You need to go out and look for the poor,'" Krajewski said. "The Holy Father told me at the beginning: 'You can sell your desk.
Konrad Krajewski is the Vatican Almoner, a centuries-old job of handing out alms - and Francis has ramped up the job to make it a hands-on extension of his own personal charity.Īs Americans gathered for Thanksgiving on Thursday, Krajewski described how Francis has redefined the little known office of papal almoner and explained the true meaning of giving during a chat with journalists over coffee and pastries a few steps from the Vatican gates. But Francis is still providing one-on-one doses of emergency assistance to the poor, sick and aged through a trusted archbishop. That's not so easy to do now that he's pope. VATICAN CITY (AP) - When he was archbishop of Buenos Aires, Pope Francis was known to sneak out at night and break bread with the homeless, sit with them literally on the street and eat with them, as part of his aim to share the plight of the poor and let them know someone cared.