A poignant Mass for Parents Who Lost a Child was celebrated Monday, November 3, 2025, at St. Brendan Catholic Church in Shallotte. During the liturgy, Father Mark Betti, pastor at St. Brendan, shared with attendees a personal letter from the late Pope Francis to a grieving mother, Cynthia, whose son Fabrizio had passed away.
Originally published in the Vatican’s monthly Piazza San Pietro (St. Peter’s Square) under the column Risponde Francesco (Francis Replies), the pope’s words acknowledged the “excruciating and unnatural” grief of losing a child. He assures Cynthia and her husband Antonio of his prayerful closeness, urges trust in Mary as “Virgin of Waiting,” and echoes St. John Paul II: “There is no evil from which God knows not how to draw a greater good.”
"I pray the Mass provided some consolation and hope, especially during the month of All Souls,” Father Mark said. “As the Holy Father’s message emphasized, Jesus weeps with the sorrowful and plants hope in every broken heart, transforming pain into a promise of eternal reunion."
Read the mother's letter and Pope Francis' reply on the Vatican website.