The Italian man suffering from the genetic skin disease neurofibromatosis who was embraced by Pope Francis earlier this month has spoken of his joy at meeting the Pontiff.
Images of the Pope kissing and embracing Vinicio Riva in St Peter’s Square made headlines around the world, but his identity and background weren’t known until two Italian news outlets found and interviewed him.
“My heart was bursting,” he told the Italian daily Corriere della Sera. When the Pope hugged him tight, he said he “felt like he was in paradise.”
Riva, 53, lives in a small village near Vicenza in northern Italy with his younger sister Morena Riva, who has the same genetic disorder, and their aunt, Caterina Lotto, who cares for them. The siblings’ late mother also suffered from the disease, which is typically hereditary.
Riva told the Italian magazine Panorama that the thing that struck him most was that the Pope didn’t hesitate at all.
“I’m not contagious, but (the Pope) didn’t know that. But he did it: He caressed my whole face and while he was doing it, I felt only love,” he said.
“First, I kissed his hand, while he caressed my head and wounds with his other hand. Then he pulled me toward him, hugging me tight and kissing my face. My head was against his chest and his arms were wrapped around me. He held me so tightly, cuddling me, and he didn’t let go.
“I tried to speak, to say something, but I wasn’t able to: I was too choked up. It lasted just a little more than a minute, but, for me, it seemed like forever. The pope’s hands are so soft. Soft and beautiful. And his smile (is) bright and wide.”
Neurofibromatosis results in numerous, often painful benign tumours. Riva, whose body is covered in these tumours, said they constantly itch and he often wakes in the morning with his shirt soaked with blood from scratching.
“The first signs (of the disease) appeared after I was 15. They said I would be dead by 30. Instead, here I am,” he said.
He frequently has been shunned by people who didn’t know him, he explained. The worst episode, he said, occurred one day as he sat in the front of a bus and a passenger told him to go sit in the back, saying, “You horrify me and I don’t want to look at you”.
“No one, not even the driver, came to my defence. In fact, many passengers agreed with the man. That really hurt,” he added.
Lotto, his aunt, told Panorama that when she and Riva would be sitting in hospital waiting rooms when he was young, she would hold him close and hug him tight whenever people cringed or moved away in fear.
She embraced him “to make them both (Riva and the others) understand” there was nothing repulsive or scary about him, she said.
Riva said that he has lots of friends and is loved by almost everyone in his village. He goes out with friends for pizza and to watch football matches.
He also flirts with the nurses, the magazine said, and, although he only earns a small allowance volunteering, he spends a good chunk of that money on them.
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.