Keyboard app Swyft has released a set of emojis dedicated to Pope Francis to commemorate his Sept. 22 visit to the United States. The emojis, which are available for both Android and iOS devices, include 52 Pope stickers and 14 animated GIFs.
Users who will download the emoji pack will find fun images of the pope with famous landmarks found in the U.S. cities he will be visiting. They include, for instance, a sticker showing Pope Francis walking ponderously before the Washington Monument and standing beside the Statue of Liberty. The pope was also depicted eating a taco, going to a concert, spinning a basketball, taking a selfie and waving from the iconic Popemobile, among others.
"We look at the whole initiative of connecting the church better with young people and young people with the church as fandom," Kathleen Hessert, Swyft's creator, said in a Mashable report. "If he was a very stoic kind of pope like we've seen so many times in the past, it probably wouldn't work. Pope Francis is a down-to-earth guy."
There are those who point out that it could offend some conservative Catholics, said Mashable. But the creators thinks that the pope will approve. This can prove legitimate as the pope has demonstrated knowledge and use of technology more than his predecessors. He has nine official Twitter accounts, for instance, with a total of more than 20 million followers, noted BBC News.
The emojis set has been commissioned by the global Catholic network Aleteia.org for the #GoodIsWinning campaign, reported CNET. The group believes that the emojis will not only honor the pope but also engage more people as mobile devices and emojis are two of the most common form of communication today.
