Tucson bishop meets Pope Francis in Rome

Pope Francis surprised the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson’s Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas and other American church leaders with a meet-and-greet in Rome Wednesday.

Kicanas is in Rome for a spiritual retreat and pilgrimage with other members of the Catholic Extension’s board of governors, including the board chancellor Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago, said press materials.

The Catholic Extension is a Chicago-based fundraising organization with strong papal connections. It works with mission dioceses in poor or rural U.S. communities, said Lisa Gunggoll, a spokeswoman for the organization.

The delegation had plans to meet with the Vatican’s secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin to give a report on the organization’s work in the United States.

But first, they stopped in for a general audience with the pope.

“It was unexpected that the pope came down and took pictures, and they were given a special place to stand,” Gunggoll said.

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The delegation introduced Pope Francis to “Flat Francis,” a social media campaign á la Flat Stanley that encourages people to download a cutout of the pope, take a selfie and then post it online with the hashtag #FlatFrancis.

So far, 48 bishops and individuals in every state have snapped shots with Flat Francis to welcome his papal counterpart to America at the end of the month.

Tucson’s Bishop Kicanas will be in Washington, D.C., for part of the pope’s visit, as will the diocese’s director of communications Steffannie Koeneman.

Kicanas has met other popes in the past, but gave no indication he expected a papal encounter on this trip, Koeneman said.

“They were hoping to meet him, but you never know,” Gunggoll said. “It’s always a possibility, but it’s not something they were expecting.”