“PLEASE, TAKE A seat in the chair where Pope Francis used to sit, and then get the medical treatment you need.”

For Peter Brune, the Secretary General of Caritas Sweden, that’s the symbolism of the so-called Vehicle of Hope – a former popemobile that has been transformed into a health clinic for Gaza children.

In 2014, Pope Francis made a papal journey to the Middle East and at one point made an unscheduled stop to pray before the Israeli separation wall in Bethlehem, surrounded by a group of young Palestinians.

Pope Francis prays at Israel's separation wall on 25 May, 2014. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

In his memoir, Hope, Francis writes that the unplanned stop “caused a few security worries”.

The popemobile that Francis used for this papal journey, which was donated by President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, has been converted into a mobile health station for the children in Gaza.

Caritas, the charity of the Catholic Church worldwide and the second-largest international humanitarian aid network in the world, said Francis gave the initiative his blessing in his final months.

The charity added that Francis blessed the endeavour and everyone involved in it.

Speaking to The Journal, Brune said he spoke to the cardinal of Sweden, Anders Arborelius, and that together they came up with the idea.

“Cardinal Arborelius was a good friend of the late Pope Francis,” said Brune, “so he brought the idea to Francis during his last visit with him, and Francis said ‘yes, it’s a beautiful idea, go for it.’”

Popemobile being readied for its new use as a mobile health clinic for children in Gaza Caritas Jerusalem Caritas Jerusalem

However, Brune said it’s “more than just a symbolic gesture”.

“We can combine the symbolic value of the Pope’s engagement for the children of Gaza with a vehicle that can bring medical care to the children.”

The vehicle will be staffed by a driver and medical doctors and is currently being fitted with equipment for diagnosis, examination and treatment.

It will carry rapid tests for infections, suture kits, syringes and needles, oxygen supplies, vaccines and a refrigerator for medicines.

The vehicle is not yet ready, but Brune remarked that “given the dire situation in Gaza, we thought, let’s publish the news now and if it can impact on the blockade in Gaza, then let it be so”.

Since 2 March, Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade.

“When it was cold, children were freezing to death, now they’re starving to death,” said Brune.

“Aid must be allowed in and if the vehicle can serve that purpose as well, then even better.”

By the time the blockade ends, Caritas says the vehicle will be ready to give primary healthcare to children in Gaza.

Brune noted that much of the work is done by Caritas Jerusalem.

“They are present in Gaza with more than 100 staff, of which at least two have been killed since the war broke out,” said Brune.

And while Brune said the vehicle is more than a symbolic gesture, he acknowledges that it does have great symbolic power.

“The message is: this is a vehicle of hope and we have not forgotten about you.

“Please take a seat in the chair where Pope Francis used to sit, and then get the medical treatment you need.

“That’s the symbolic value of it. The children of Gaza deserve better.”

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Pope Francis in the popemobile during the 2014 trip to the Middle East Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Meanwhile, Brune said the modified popemobile is also a symbol of Francis’s “humble service to the most vulnerable and very much in his spirit”.

“That’s why he immediately said ‘yes’.

“I wasn’t sure he was going to say ‘yes’, but when we presented this idea to him and we got a positive reply, I was very happy.”

Elsewhere, cardinal Arborelius noted both the symbolic and practical nature of the vehicle.

“The converted popemobile is both a health provider on wheel but also a message of hope – a vehicle that can show that the world has not forgotten the children of Gaza.”

Arborelius was appointed as a Cardinal by Francis in 2016.

“I can assure you that the suffering of so many children in Gaza was very close to his heart,” said Arborelius.

Since 9 October, 2023, Francis daily called Gaza’s only Catholic parish and would call several times a day when the bombing was at its most intense.

Arborelius described it as a “beautiful initiative”.

“It’s a symbol of hope and that there is a future even for the children in Gaza but also concrete action of solidarity and support for the most vulnerable.”

You can read more about the initiative here.