About the Book and Author

Now Featured in the Patheos Book Club
Dear Pope Francis
The Pope Answers Letters from Children Around the World
By Pope Francis

About the Book
If you could ask Pope Francis one question, what would it be?

Children have questions and struggles just like adults, but rarely are they given the chance to voice their concerns and ask the big questions resting deep in their hearts. In Dear Pope Francis, Pope Francis gives them that chance and celebrates their spiritual depth by directly answering questions from children around the world. Some are fun. Some are serious. And some will quietly break your heart. But all of them are from children who deserve to know and feel God's unconditional love.

About the Author
Pope Francis was once a child just like any other. He was born on December 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He had two brothers and two sisters and they called him "Jorge," though his full name was Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was a regular child who liked to play soccer, go to school, and even dance the tango. When he was 21 years old, he decided to become a priest and was ordained in 1969. After many years of helping people in Argentina as a priest and later as a bishop, he was elected pope in 2013.

Pope Francis is the first Jesuit pope and the first pope from the Americas. Today he lives in the Vatican. (Did you know that the Vatican is its own country within Italy?) He loves to travel around the world meeting with people, especially children. Pope Francis wants children to be inspired by mercy, joy, and a loving relationship with God.