A pair of worn papal shoes and a previously unreleased video interview have become an unexpected legacy from Pope Francis, thanks to a longtime friendship with Los Angeles evangelist Noel Díaz.
Díaz, founder of the Spanish-language Catholic network ESNE, first met the Pope in 2016 aboard the papal flight to Cuba and Mexico. A former shoeshine boy from Tijuana, Díaz presented Francis with a replica of his childhood shoeshine box — then knelt to shine the Pope’s actual shoes. What was meant to be a symbolic gesture turned into a deep spiritual bond.
Angelus News explains how, years later, during a private visit in 2023, Pope Francis gave Díaz a gift: his own black shoes, battered from travel and ministry. Díaz, who grew up undocumented and built a thriving optical business alongside his media ministry, saw the shoes as a sign of a Church that walks with the poor. “He has given us that legacy of serving our brothers and sisters,” he said.
But the more startling gift came in the form of a never-before-seen interview the two recorded in 2021. Meant for a documentary, the video was not released until after the Pope’s death in April.
In it, Francis offers a striking meditation on the apostle Peter — and on what it means to be pope.
Francis acknowledged that some popes have erred but emphasized that the Holy Spirit protects the faith itself. He suggested that Peter was chosen not for his strength, but for his humility and ability to recognize his own sinfulness.
Díaz had kept the video private with plans for the documentary, fearing it might be misunderstood or politicized. After the Pope’s death, he shared it with friends at the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communications, who asked to release it publicly. He agreed, choosing the Vatican platform over his own network to ensure the message reached a global audience.
The video, now published by Vatican News, offers an important message as the Church welcomes the new Successor of Peter.
Díaz, who has ministered to migrants and the marginalized for decades, said he was deeply moved by the memory of his friendship with the pope — and by the final encounter they shared in November, just months before Francis’ death.
“He joked about needing another shoeshine,” Díaz told Angelus News. Then the pope handed him his shoes.
