February 3, 2014
The tiny office that handles Pope Francis' mail is swamped and working overtime, according to this report from Reuters: You've got mail, Pope Francis.
Pope Francis does not have an email account, according to the story. One senior aide said the pope likes to receive "old fashion letters."
The pope's postal office -- staffed by a monsignor, two laywomen and a nun -- gets about 30 sacks, or about 6,000 letters a week, which would make a yearly total of more than 300,000.
Most are requests for comfort and prayers, the Reuters' story says. Those seeking economic assistance are forward to local Catholic charities. The most urgent and personal letters are passed to the pope's two private priest-secretaries to give to him.
