Pope meets Sri Lankan amputee

(Aug.20,2009): The wish of an 18-year-old Sri Lankan youth, who lost his arms and legs came true when he met and spoke with Pope Benedict XVI. Rajiv Janine, whose limbs were amputated after a rail accident, was able to meet the Pope after Wednesday’s general audience at the Pontiff's summer residence of Castel Gandolfo. Janine told the Holy Father his story, and asked for a blessing on himself and his brother, who will soon be ordained a priest, and his sister, who is a religious in the Philippines.
Vatican newspaper l’Osservatore reported that the young boy stood with prosthetic limbs, bought with the money raised by a solidarity campaign in Italy. It also reported that this campaign was initiated by an Italian priest, Father Giuseppe Iasso of Mercogliano, in the Avellino province of Southern Italy. The priest has been promoting initiatives like this for some 25 years to help the needy in two Sri Lankan villages and to advance interreligious dialogue among the Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims. The priest said that they have been collaborating closely with the civil and religious authorities in supporting schools and hospitals in the area. He affirmed that these projects have been made possible thanks to the generosity of numerous Italians.
Fr. Iasso said that after the successful campaign, he wrote to the Pontiff to tell him about Janine, and the Pope expressed his desire to meet the young boy.