Pope Francis is the most progressive pope the Catholic Church has ever had. It's no surprise then that he would also be the first pope to get his very own set of emoji, the communication method du jour.
In honor of Pope Francis' first visit to the United States later this month, Swyft Media has created a new Popemoji keyboard app available to download for free for iOS and Android devices featuring the religious leader doing classically American things.
There are 52 stickers in all featuring both illustrations and photos of the pope and 14 GIFs. In this sticker set, you'll find the pope looking like he's having a blast during his trip to the U.S. as he visits the Lincoln Memorial, rides in a New York City taxicab and passes a football.
The Popemoji were commissioned by the global Catholic network Aleteia.org and are part of its Millennial-focused "Good is Winning" digital campaign "to highlight acts of mercy, kindness, courage and dignity in everyday life" before, during and after the pope's visit to the U.S.
“Emoji are so ingrained in digital and social language, particularly among young people, that it was natural to make them an element of our digital effort to support Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S.,” said Kathleen Hessert, the founder of Sports Media Challenge, which oversees the digital part of Aleteia.org’s effort, in a press release announcing the new Popemoji.
The Popemoji can be used with iMessage, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, LINE, WeChat and several other messaging apps. It is available to download for free now from the App Store and Google Play.
This East Coast visit by Pope Francis makes him the fourth pope to vist the U.S. Details are on the official schedule page. The pope arrives in Washington, D.C., the afternoon of Sept. 22, moves to New York City late in the afternoon of Sept. 24 where his visit includes a prayer service at St. Patrick's Cathedral, then on Friday, Sept. 25, he visits the United Nations and at 6 p.m. holds Mass at Madison Square Garden. He then moves to Philadelphia on Saturday morning, where he visits through Sunday evening before he leaves at 8 p.m. to return to Rome.
Via: CNET
