Monsignor Hilary Franco, adviser for the mission to the Holy See, recalled his close friendship with Pope Francis, telling Newsmax on Thursday that the late Pontiff had a “tremendous sense of humor” and will be missed. 

“My good friend is gone to heaven,” Franco, the author of “Six Popes,” told Newsmax’s Rob Astorino, who is at Vatican City for the coverage of the Pope’s visitation and upcoming funeral.

“I know that he’s praying for us, praying for the church, praying for the world. This is a man who had the courage to face the world and try to do as much as he could to bring peace to this disenchanted world that we live in. “

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