Scots charity chief 'inspired' by Pope Francis's dedication to children in poverty
Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow met the late pontiff just weeks before he died and said the religious leader was an inspiration.
A CHARITY boss who met Pope Francis just weeks before his death has praised the pontiff for his dedication to children in poverty.
Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, founder of Scottish charity Mary's Meals, said the Catholic leader was an 'incredibly warm man' and a 'challenging Pope '.
During a trip to Rome in February MacFarlane-Barrow attended the Vatican World Leaders Summit on Children's Rights where he met the Pope for the last time.
He said: 'There were about 40 people in the room, it was a whole day event and he came round and greeted every person in the room even though he was clearly struggling with his health at that time.
' He was in a wheelchair and had difficulty breathing. He surprised us as I thought he would give an opening speech and then leave us to it but he stayed for most of the day.
'It was a consistent thing through his whole pontificate. He was very passionate about children and about the poorest people in the world and wanted to be part of that conversation we were all having.'
On another occasion the Pope encouraged the charity chief to 'keep going forward' with his charity, which feeds hundreds of thousands of children in some of the poorest countries every day.
MacFarlane-Barrow said: 'Not long after he was made Pope I met him for the first time. He was a really warm man with this incredible way of encouraging people.
'He told me to 'just keep going', he kept telling me to 'go forward'.
'I think he was an incredibly challenging Pope. I felt very challenged by him personally, in a good way.
'He really gave us all a good shake and reminded us that if we claim to be Christian it can't just be words. It needs to be actions and the way we live our lives.'
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