By Marco Hugo Barsotti MHB 
You are listening to a new special from am1575news, Francia24 and Radio Centrale Milano, in podcasting and on the medium waves.
The farewell of a historic figure
Yesterday, in Rome, former MEP Emma Bonino passed away at the age of seventy‑eight. Her death was announced by priest Antonio Spadaro, former director of *Civiltà Cattolica*, who wanted to recall the deep respect that Bonino’s figure inspired even among the most traditional.
An unexpected meeting with the Pope
On 5 November 2024 Pope Francis, returning from his visit to the Pontifical Gregorian University, diverted his car, a white Fiat 500L, towards a street in central Rome. There he stopped in front of Emma Bonino, recently discharged after difficult weeks, bringing with him a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates. The Pontiff greeted the woman in Piedmontese, “Cerea”, invoking their common roots, and when asked about his mood he simply replied: “Very well”. A photograph of that afternoon remains indelible: two seniors in wheelchairs, side by side on the terrace of a Roman house, testifying to a gesture of humanity beyond any difference.
A bond beyond differences
Their meeting dates back to 4 November 2015, when Bonino took part in the general audience in the Paul VI Hall to present the initiatives of the Fabbrica della Pace in support of refugee children. That same year, the Pontiff called her as soon as he learned of her illness, and on 8 November 2016 he received her in a private audience. From that moment on, phone calls, messages and visits followed, despite their opposite positions on crucial issues such as abortion and euthanasia. Neither ever pretended to change course: they discussed prisons, migrants, those without a voice. He described her as “an example of liberty and resistance”, she, in turn, told him she cared for him.
Antonio Spadaro’s message
Spadaro emphasizes that we live in an age where the opponent is often reduced to an enemy to be eliminated, but that bouquet of roses and those chocolates tell a simple truth: diversity of opinions should not exclude respect for the person. Friendship, he writes, does not wait for ideas to coincide; it only requires the willingness to come closer. In this gesture of humanity, the memory of Emma Bonino remains a warning for everyone: someone who thinks differently is still a person you can visit, bringing a gift of kindness.
Rachel’s Editorial – “The final farewell or the gala magazine?”
I will now read you my editorial for today.
Emma Bonino died this morning in Rome, at seventy‑eight, according to what was reported by former director of *Civiltà Cattolica* Antonio Spadaro. The statement describes her last public appearance: a brief visit by Pope Francis in a white Fiat 500L which, instead of continuing towards Santa Marta, stopped in a side street of the centre to exchange a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates. It is said that the Pontiff greeted her in Piedmontese with a “Cerea” and then commented “Very well”.
The piece begins denouncing “useless celebrations” and “Catholics who use fiery words” to portray Bonino as a controversial figure, then presenting a “true Catholic” who narrates an almost postcard‑like scene. It is curious that the journalist makes us read such a detailed testimony – from the date of their 2015 meeting to Pope Francis’s audience for the Fabbrica della Pace – without explaining why all these particulars should interest the average reader. What becomes of the news when the content turns into a courting novel?
The narrative unfolds between precise dates (5 November 2024, 4 November 2015, 8 November 2016) and anecdotes of “phone calls, messages, and an unexpected doorbell”. One reads, almost with astonishment, that the positions on abortion and euthanasia were always opposite, but that “friendship does not wait for ideas to coincide”. The paradox is evident: the article denounces polarization while at the same time presents it as a decorative element rather than a reality of debate. It is a contradiction that deserves to be highlighted.
Finally, it ends with a rather obvious moral: “someone who thinks differently is still a person you can go visit, bringing some chocolates”. Yet the same sentence is placed in a context that seems more a praise of courteous gestures than a serious reflection on friendship and ideological differences. The reader is left wondering whether the narrative really intends to celebrate diversity or if, behind the veneer of pity, it hides a new form of media theatricality.
Koan of the day
Monk: Master, why does a news about someone’s death turn into a banquet of roses and chocolates?
Master: Because memory, like honey, is sweeter when mixed with the scent of a gesture, even if the gesture is only a window onto a story.
Monk: And what truly remains when differences are dressed in reds and sweets?
Master: The same truth remains: the silence of time continues to flow, indifferent to the colour of the roses or the flavour of the chocolates.
This is all for now. From the Paris editorial office I am Rachel Costa: this is am1575news, Francia24 and Radio Centrale Milano.
Source: AudioVisione – AM 1575 News