Pope Francis “really embraced the world” and wanted to be with the people of God at all times, said Monsignor Hilary Franco on Newmax.

“I was very close to the Holy Father. I knew him since 2002,” Franco said Monday during an appearance on “Newsline.”

“I was present at his inauguration, and I continued to be with him several times during these 12 years of great action by a pope who really embraced the world, not only the church. He wanted to be with the people of God at all times. And this is the courage that was given to him by the Holy Spirit.

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