A Boy from Podravina: Blessed by the Pope
Gabrijel Hobolja, an eighth-grade student from Kloštar Podravski, described his encounter with Pope Leo XIV in the Vatican as the best moment of his life, highlighting complete inner peace and joy.
Gabrijel Hobolja, an eighth-grade student from Kloštar Podravski, described his encounter with Pope Leo XIV in the Vatican as the best moment of his life, highlighting complete inner peace and joy.
Gabrijel Hobolja, an eighth-grade student at Kloštar Podravski Elementary School, fulfilled his long-standing wish and met Pope Leo XIV in the Vatican. This versatile boy, who is active in the children's choir of the Parish of St. Benedict and Our Lady of Sorrows and has been playing the flute for years, shared his moving experience in a testimony published by Podravski list on Wednesday, August 12, 2026.
Due to the extreme heat, the general audience with the Pope was not held in St. Peter's Square but inside the Basilica itself. Gabrijel particularly emphasizes the Vatican's accessibility for people with disabilities. "Access for people with disabilities like me is on a completely different level throughout the Vatican than in any other country I have visited so far. Every entrance, step, and obstacle is adapted for the most vulnerable," he wrote.
He describes the Pope's entrance into the Basilica as an incredible moment that filled him with complete inner peace. The front rows were reserved for children and people with special needs, right in front of the altar. After a short homily and the Lord's Prayer in Latin, the Pope began blessing those in the front rows.
"He kept getting closer to me every second, and the tension, excitement, happiness, and joy kept growing within me," Gabrijel recalls. The key moment came when the Pope looked him in the eyes. "The moment I realized he had looked me in the eyes, when I caught His hand and kissed it, my body completely surrendered to God; I only saw Him, I was no longer aware of anything else happening around me. The peace of the Holy Spirit overcame me."
Pope Leo XIV blessed Gabrijel and his family and asked where they were from. Overwhelmed with excitement, the boy could not speak. "My body could not respond, so my parents answered for me; I was literally 'speechless'," he admits. The entire encounter lasted less than two minutes, but the emotions that followed were immensely powerful. After the blessing, the family received consecrated rosaries, and people from all over the world waved to them as they left the Basilica.
"Then the emotions 'exploded.' Joy, happiness, blessing, love, and many other feelings hit us all, each in a different way," Gabrijel writes. His smile, which appeared the moment he met the Pope, never left his face. Upon exiting, they realized that thousands of people in St. Peter's Square had been watching the live broadcast of the audience on large screens.
"They all saw how Pope Leo XIV, the successor of St. Peter, blessed me. The best moment of my life! I received what few manage to get: the Pope's blessing. Thank God for everything!" Gabrijel concluded his testimony. Photos from this special event were provided by photographer Kristina Maslać.
