Meet Baby Named After Pope Francis, Born During Papal Mass
By Stephanie Stahl
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A new baby named after Pope Francis, it happened during the papal mass yesterday.
"He's definitely a blessing," says new mom Erin Malinowski. He wasn't due until October 12th, but her baby boy arrived early - on the day Pope Francis said mass in Philadelphia. Turns out, it's a special day for Erin and her husband Jim. "On the exact nine month anniversary of our wedding our son was born," Jim explains.
Talk about timing, and there's more. For their wedding on December 27th, the couple got a papal blessing for their marriage from Pope Francis. Erin says, "It's was just a little uncanny that he came exactly nine months after that day."
Erin and Jim are devote Catholics and were watching the mass when the baby was born at 6:27 Sunday night. "When he came out, we said we knew we would have to put Francis in his name, so we decided to name him James Francis."
Francis, being the Pope who blessed their marriage exactly 9 months before the baby was born and when the Pope was in Philadelphia.
Jim says, "It's not a coincidence, it's definitely Gods plan." So instead of naming the baby what they planned James Paul they switched his middle name to Francis.
And the labor and delivery nurse at Bryn Mawr Hospital who helped Jimmy Francis come into the world switched schedules so a colleague could attend the mass. Also, Erin's sister and mom were at the mass when the baby was born. "There definitely has to be some divine intervention here," Erin says.
Nurse Nancy says 27 will be the baby's lucky number, his birthday, the parents anniversary and the time he was born weighing 6 pounds 13 ounces.