This cute, loveable likeness of the Holy Father is the brainchild of Sacred Heart Toys, a Catholic-owned and operated company. Michael and Laurel MacKinnon founded it in 2012, shortly after their daughter, Amelia, was born.

“We knew about the World Meeting of Families, but we didn’t know the Pope was coming to the United States,” Laurel MacKinnon said. They chose to make the doll because “it seemed like the natural next teaching toy.”

The MacKinnons converted to Catholicism in 2010. They were so moved by the richness of the Catholic faith that they wanted to bring it even to the youngest children through devotional toys.

They began with the plush, one-decade rosary. Since Sacred Heart Toys initially began during the Year of Faith, 2012-2013, in October, the month dedicated to the holy Rosary, the MacKinnons are especially grateful to our Blessed Mother. They believe Our Lady guided and helped them in creating these toys that inspire faith, prayer and devotion.

Following the rosary came the plush cross and Mother Mary and Guardian Angel rattles. The Holy Father was the next logical addition.

“Our toys are all about providing a platform for teaching the faith to our youngest Catholics,” MacKinnon noted. The Pope Francis doll “falls in line with the tenets of the faith and imparting those to children.”

“It’s not about thinking Francis is cool,” she said, “but about who he is as a successor of Peter.”

 

Pope Doll Teaches Much

Pope Francis is not dressed in the usual white cassock in this doll — he wears green vestments.

“We chose to have our Holy Father wear his traditional Ordinary Time vestments that are all embroidered. This is because it is Ordinary Time most of the year,” MacKinnon explained. (Searching the Internet brings up many photos of Francis wearing green vestments.)

“For children, this is a teaching point regarding liturgical colors,” MacKinnon explained.

Nearly 10 inches tall, the Holy Father doll is meant to teach even more. “The patch on his back describes his titles, the keys of the Pope’s authority for binding and loosing are in silver and gold (symbolizing binding on earth and binding in heaven), the Bible verses in which Jesus bestows his office upon Peter [are included] and also a prompt to pray for his intentions.” And there is also the wording of Mathew 16:18-19.

“We wanted to incorporate more teaching points this way,” MacKinnon said.

 

Practical Side

In addition, Sacred Heart Toys just added new colors to their line of one-decade rosaries called “My First Rosary” — a green one and a pink one. The Pope Francis doll connects, in a way, because the Holy Father has said he prays the Rosary every day.

“All the toys tie in,” MacKinnon explained. “All are teaching points of the faith.”

“They lift the hearts and minds of those who look at them to God,” she said. “Adults might not be hugging and squeezing the plush toys, but, surely, when they see them, their minds and, hopefully hearts, are also lifted to God.”

 

World Meeting of Families

“My First Rosary was chosen as one of the official products of the World Meeting of Families, which is really exciting,” MacKinnon said. Sacred Heart toys is also an official sponsor of the family congress.

“They are the only ones on the market actually safety-tested for infants,” MacKinnon said of the rosaries.

The Pope Francis doll will be available at World Meeting directly from Sacred Heart Toys, which will have an exhibit booth. Naturally, the MacKinnons would love to give a doll, plus a rosary, to the Holy Father himself when he is in Philadelphia.

Back home, the MacKinnons’ 3-year-old daughter Amelia likes her Pope Francis doll a lot, according to her mother. She loves walking around with one of the Sacred Heart crosses under her arm, too.

Soon, Amelia will be able to share her Pope Francis doll and rosary with a new brother or sister.

Joseph Pronechen is the

Register’s staff writer.

Photo courtesy of Sacred Heart Toys