Based on the personal recollections of Toronto's Cardinal Francis Leo, the only period of his life when he didn’t feel a call to religious life was when he was a young child growing up in the Villeray neighbourhood near Montreal’s Little Italy.

In the early 1970s, his life purpose was to be the lovable son of his Italian immigrant parents Francesco Leo and Rosa Valente.

Giovanna Ho, Leo’s maternal cousin, frequented the future Cardinal's family home often up until he turned 10. She said Leo was impressive even as a toddler.

Advertisement

“I would say he was articulate for a toddler, and he made a connection,” said Ho. “He was charismatic in a way. When he did something naughty, he would apologize for it, but he was very chatty. He just loved to connect with people.”

Ho, who married Peter Ho in 1995, worked the same summer job as Rosa. She said Rosa and little Frank touched base multiple times throughout the day.

“He must have been four years old,” recalled Ho. “Imagine his mom calling him so many times a day. They needed to hear each other’s voices.”

Growing older cultivated an increasing awareness within Leo about the challenges an immigrant family faces and the upstanding characters of Francesco and Rosa.

“The experience of being born and brought up in an immigrant family brought about in itself a certain cultural, religious, spiritual baggage, which was wonderful in terms of faith, family, hard work, respect and honour,” said Leo. “These are all prime values that we live by, and I am blessed to have got that from my parents.”

Leo’s eventual yearning to be a servant of the Church may have been subconsciously sparked when he and his Grade 2 schoolmates performed a skit of the Last Supper to celebrate their First Communion. It remains a seminal memory.

As a teenager, Leo heard someone say, “you have two vocations: one, to become a saint, and two, how to get there.” The now 53-year-old began the journey of discernment. He sought to discover the role God wanted him to play in His pre-conceived grand design. What ended up “determining and beautiful” about this process of illumination was when Leo decided to give the Lord “cart blanche.” It became clear he would seek the priesthood.

Derived from a place of caring and concern for Leo’s wellbeing, the Hos said the family was initially skeptical about his choice. They urged him to go out with his friends and find a girlfriend, but the young man was unshakably convinced.

“I remember his Mom saying to me, ‘so we sent him to Italy for a holiday. And we thought, here he is, going to Europe like a backpacker guy and he is going to go around and meet a whole pile of people,’ ” reminisced Peter.

Leo returned from his European adventure with plenty of photos, but virtually all were pictures of old churches.

Advertisement

“It was a sign and a message that (caused) the family to understand, ‘ok, (the priesthood) is not a two-week idea,' ” said Peter. “This is his calling and what he wants to do.”

The successive three decades have resoundingly validated the wisdom of Leo’s choice. And in an astounding illustration of how surrendering to God’s will springs forth graces beyond imagination, the invitation to join the cardinalate drew Leo’s father, Francesco, back to his Italian homeland for the first time since he emigrated in 1953 — 71 years ago.

The elder Leo has been one of the toasts of the Canadian consistory delegation. Speakers and guests at the opening dinner have praised his infectious smile, good humour and obvious love for his boy.

“He is living the dream,” said Peter. “I don’t think he ever thought he was coming back. Not only is he coming back to see his son be made a cardinal, but he is also coming back to his home where he left when he was 10 years old.”

Francesco is touring his homeland for a couple of weeks following the Papal Consistory. He will spend cherished time with many relations living in southern Italy.

Leo’s cousin Rosella Pozzi said Francesco’s return is “a very special moment.” She is not sure yet of what specific activities or sights are on Francesco’s travel bucket list, but she is sure he will have plenty of loved ones by his side.

“When you are a big family you stay with family,” said Pozzi.

One day before the ceremony in St. Peter’s Basilica, Leo told The Catholic Register what it meant to him that his ecclesiastical advancement paved the way for a triumphant homecoming.

“I’m glad that he will be able to visit some family that he still has in the village,” said Leo of his father. “We are happy for him. This is a very important part of his life. He came (to Canada) in the 1950s like so many immigrants. They were trying to start over a new life, and with many of the challenges and difficulties immigrants face today as well.

“To be able to come full circle after years of hard work, and thinking of the family, the timing was right and God provided the occasion.”

Though Rosa’s passing prevented her from experiencing her son’s incredible day, Catholics believe that loved ones who depart from the Earth look down on us from Heaven.

Advertisement

Cecilia Zucchi, a long-time friend of Leo and his philosophy professor at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal, remembers that he responded to Rosa’s passing by “becoming even more passionate about the Virgin Mary, and his dedication to her even deeper.”

Considering faith and sacrifice were both required by his family to navigate life, Leo said those traits were more easily summoned by the Holy Family’s inspiration as Jesus, Mary and Joseph's “love of family and hard work” while experiencing hardships.