Australian Theresa Ardler was the last person to have a private audience with the late Pope Francis

Summary

Australian Theresa Ardler had the unique experience of being the last person to have a private audience with the late Pope Francis. During a trip to Rome, which coincided with her birthday, Ardler met with the pope at his residence in a personal meeting that was both touching and poignant. Despite his frail condition, Pope Francis presented her with a cherished rosary. Ardler's visit also linked her to the new pope, days before his appointment. This brief account captures Ardler's special relationship with the deceased pontiff and highlights her ongoing dedication to his ecological teachings, emphasizing the care for our planet from a cultural perspective.

Highlights

• Theresa Ardler was the last to meet the late Pope Francis privately, coincidentally on her birthday. 🎉
• Despite his health, Pope Francis gifted Ardler a rosary she cherishes deeply. 🕊️
• The meeting was arranged through personal connections with the pope's family. 🤝
• Ardler also encountered Cardinal Robert, who later became Pope, highlighting an unexpected turn of events. ⚜️
• The interactions underscored a shared commitment to ecological concerns and support for marginalized communities. 🌎

Key Takeaways

• Theresa Ardler, an Australian, met the late Pope Francis during a heartfelt encounter on her birthday. 🎂
• Pope Francis, although in frail health, gave Ardler a cherished rosary during their last meeting. 🌹
• Ardler's visit also included an unexpected meeting with the future pope before his appointment. 🔮
• Her connection with Pope Francis was rooted in mutual respect and shared ecological concerns. 🌍
• The experiences emphasize the importance of cultural perspectives in global issues like climate change. 🌿

Overview

Theresa Ardler, an Australian cultural lecturer, had the profound opportunity to meet the late Pope Francis on a trip to Rome which coincided with her birthday. The visit was arranged through familial connections, and despite his frail condition, the pope warmly welcomed her, gifting a rosary that holds significant sentimental value.

The encounter was not just a personal milestone; it was a poignant moment as she witnessed the pope's declining health yet experienced his enduring humanity and warmth. Additionally, her visit turned serendipitous as she briefly met the then Cardinal Robert, who unexpectedly became the new pontiff shortly after.

Ardler's interactions during this trip underscored her ongoing dedication to the ecological teachings of Pope Francis, particularly his efforts to address climate change through the lens of cultural and indigenous knowledge. Her unique position allowed her to actively engage in the global movement towards environmental sustainability, emphasizing traditional practices in safeguarding our planet.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction and Context This chapter sets the scene by focusing on the recent events in the Vatican, starting with the death and funeral of Pope Francis, followed by the conclave and the announcement of Pope Leo the 14th. It also introduces an Australian woman, Theresa Randler, who had a personal encounter with the newly elected pope just days before his appointment. The chapter highlights the global and personal impact of these events.
• 00:30 - 01:00: Theresa's Pilgrimage and Birthday Meeting Theresa returned home from a pilgrimage to Rome, which coincided with her birthday. Despite feeling exhausted, she felt blessed to have been in Rome during this special occasion.
• 01:00 - 01:30: Special Meeting on Birthday On her birthday, Theresa had a special meeting where she met Pope Francis in Rome. This was related to his encyclical 'Lato Sea', which focuses on climate change and its impacts. The meeting signifies a personal connection and dialogue with the pope, emphasizing a shared concern for environmental issues.
• 01:30 - 02:00: Invitation to Meet Pope Francis The chapter titled 'Invitation to Meet Pope Francis' discusses the Pope's outreach to individuals from all backgrounds, with a particular emphasis on First Nations people living in marginalized areas. It highlights their unique cultural perspectives on environmental stewardship. The chapter also reveals a personal narrative about being invited to meet Pope Francis on one's birthday, exploring how this opportunity arose and the experience of that meeting.
• 02:00 - 02:30: Meeting Description The chapter titled 'Meeting Description' includes a conversation where the speaker talks about their close relationship with a family, particularly with a nephew named Josie, who is the child of Maria, the speaker's sister. The speaker recounts receiving a phone call around 6:00 PM and mentions being picked up, but the details remain incomplete in the provided text.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Gift from Pope Francis During a visit, the narrator was picked up in a black BMW by two men in black suits and driven to Santa Marta, where Pope Francis resides. They spent a couple of hours together, which the narrator found beautiful. Despite his frail condition, as he was in a wheelchair, Pope Francis greeted the narrator warmly.
• 03:00 - 04:00: Ongoing Legacy and Work The chapter titled 'Ongoing Legacy and Work' reflects on a poignant moment of receiving a cherished rosary from someone who seemed unlike their usual bubbly self, indicating it was likely a final farewell. Despite the sadness due to their difficulty in breathing, the moment was treasured. The narrative hints at the enduring legacy that person leaves behind.
• 04:00 - 05:00: Meeting the New Pope and Burial Experience The chapter introduces the experience of meeting the new Pope who is actively working on an encyclical and engaging on the world stage with other leaders. There is a focus on environmental stewardship, emphasizing the importance of continuing traditional practices to care for country, waterways, seas, and oceans amidst the challenges posed by climate change.
• 05:00 - 06:00: Cardinal Robert and Future Pope The chapter discusses the need for change and care for the country. It touches upon a meeting between Theresa and the future Pope days before the conclave, describing an encounter at the burial with the future Pope's nephew, Mario Begolio.
• 06:00 - 07:00: Closing Remarks This chapter, titled 'Closing Remarks,' describes a poignant moment in the later days of an individual who held a deep connection to St. Mary Major Basilica. The individual would frequently visit the Basilica, spending time in a car outside praying to Mary, who held great significance in their life. These remarks highlight the personal and spiritual importance of the location and the figure of Mary to this person.

Australian Theresa Ardler was the last person to have a private audience with the late Pope Francis Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 Now, the world's attention has been on the Vatican after the death and funeral of Pope Francis last month and then the conclave and announcement of Pope Leo the 14th this week. Well, for one Australian woman, it's all been very personal. Unexpectedly, Theresa Randler also met the newest pope days before his appointment was decided. The Gatagle Bjigel Gambang and Wandi Wandian lecture at Notre Dame joins us now from her home at Wreck Aboriginal community on the New South Wales South Coast. Good morning.
• 00:30 - 01:00 Welcome to Weekend Breakfast. Good morning. You've just returned home after that long trip back from Rome where you made a pilgrimage. Uh just to begin with, how are you feeling? um a bit exhausted but um at the same time um uh it was a blessing that I was in Rome at that time for my birthday. Yes. And
• 01:00 - 01:30 and in fact you had a very special meeting on your birthday. Tell me about that Theresa and your friendship with the late pope. Um yeah, I got to meet Pope Francis a couple of times when I was in Rome and um that was to do with his encycl on Lato Sea which is um talking about climate change and um how it impacts um
• 01:30 - 02:00 all walks of life, especially um First Nations people that live in the marginal areas and the peripheries around the world that are struggling um but understand their ways of knowing and doing in regards to um their cultural lens in looking after country and and in fact he invited you to meet with him on your birthday. How did that come about and what was that like?
• 02:00 - 02:30 Um yeah, it was uh it was I've always been close with the family and um his nephew Josie. So um yeah, that's he belongs to Maria, his um his uh sister. And um so yeah, I received a phone call around um would have been around 6:00 in the afternoon and I got picked up um by uh a
• 02:30 - 03:00 black BMW um with two um uh men in black suits and they drove me to uh Santa Marta where he lives and I got to spend some time with him, a couple hours and which was very beautiful and um he always uh greeted me with u daresa you know um he was in his wheelchair still and he couldn't really
• 03:00 - 03:30 talk much and um but he gave me a beautiful rosary that I will cherish um the rest of my life you know um I sort of knew it was along um because um it just wasn't his uh um bubbly ly self and because he couldn't breathe and uh yeah so it was very it was a lovely time but um also very sad for me but he leaves a
• 03:30 - 04:00 long legacy um with me in um still working towards uh his encyclico and being part of on a world stage with other um people just like me around the world that work with leard I see and looking at how we continue to look after our country, our waterways, our sea and ocean and um from our old traditional practices and because what climate
• 04:00 - 04:30 change is doing and promote that we need to um really um care for our country. Yeah. And and Theresa, I understand that you came to meet uh what is who is the now new pope days before the conclave. What happened? Um I was at the burial and I was with his nephew Mario Begolio and uh we um
• 04:30 - 05:00 yeah, so we we went to cuz I was staying across the road from just walking distance to St. Mary Major the Basilica um where he always used to go and pray and um in his last few days he just used to go in a car and sit outside of the in the car um and just pray um you know to Mary um our lady is was very precious to him very important and um so we was
• 05:00 - 05:30 waiting for him to arrive um we was in the basilica waiting for him and the cardinals and um never been to a um a pope's a pontiff so burial. So you know and I guess he's the the first in many many years um to be not buried in the Vatican um because it's only popes I mean sorry cardinals that go down to the burial. So to be present at the burial was um it was overwhelming but very
• 05:30 - 06:00 beautiful and and afterwards um a few of the cardinals came up and said hello to me and Mario and um one of them was Cardinal Robert um from Peru. Um, I didn't think he doesn't really have much of a an American accent. Um, you know, because he also he's uh he speaks very fluent in Italian and stuff, but he knew I was um close with Pope Francis. And um
• 06:00 - 06:30 what I what I love about um what he said to me was that he is very much in line with Pope Francis because of um the marginalized. it really cares about the marginalized people around the world and who live in the peripheries like indigenous people. So he worked a lot of um with them in Peru, you know, and he got to um know him like um family. So he really um I didn't know he was going to
• 06:30 - 07:00 be the next pope, but it was a lovely um conver um conversation that I had with him and um I feel it was a great blessing. What a very uh special conversation indeed. Theresa Adler, thank you so much for joining us. Great to have you along. Thank you very much. All the best. Bye-bye.