By Stephen DeAngelis
The world lost a gentle soul when Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio) passed away on the morning of 21 April 2025 at the age of eighty-eight. He loved his faith. He loved people. And he loved the planet on which we live. It was fitting that his final public appearance, the day before he died, was on Easter Sunday, the holiest day of the year for Christians. Vatican correspondent Nicole Winfield notes, “From his first greeting [to the public as Pope] — a remarkably normal ‘Buonasera’ (‘Good evening’) — to his embrace of refugees and the downtrodden, Francis signaled a very different tone for the papacy, stressing humility over hubris for a Catholic Church beset by scandal and accusations of indifference.”[1]
Pope Francis’ election as Pope resulted in a lot of “firsts.” He was the first pope from the Society of Jesus (the Jesuit Order), the first from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere, and the first born or raised outside of Europe since the eighth-century Syrian pope Gregory III. His election was a bit of a surprise. It came on the heels of the unexpected abdication of the papacy by the much more conservative Pope Benedict XVI. His election was a surprise since Pope Benedict appointed most of the cardinals who voted to elect the more liberal Cardinal Bergoglio. The new Pope chose Francis as his papal name in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi.
He was known for being less formal and more outwardly modest than his predecessors. For example, he chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae (House of St. Martha) guest house rather than live in the papal apartments of the Apostolic Palace used by previous popes. Journalist Anthony Faiola described the Pope’s quarters as “a boardinghouse plunked behind a gas station.”[2] Well aware of the conditions suffered by the poor around the world, Pope Francis was a critic of unbridled capitalism, consumerism, and overdevelopment. He also focused attention on the need to address climate change and its devastating effects — especially on the poor.
His liberal views did not sit well with all Roman Catholics; however, no one questioned his humility and dedication to serving others. Born on 17 December 1936 in Flores, a neighborhood of Buenos Aires. He was the eldest of the five children of Mario José Bergoglio, an Italian immigrant, and Regina María Sívori. His father’s family left Italy in 1929 to escape the fascist rule of Benito Mussolini. Pope Francis officially became a Jesuit on 12 March 1960 when he made his perpetual vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience as a member of the order. His initial assignments as a Jesuit involved teaching. He obtained a licentiate in philosophy from the Colegio Máximo de San José. He then taught literature and psychology at the Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepción, a high school in Santa Fe, from 1964 to 1965. In 1966, he taught the same courses at the Colegio del Salvador in Buenos Aires.
On 13 December 1969, he was ordained a priest by Archbishop Ramón José Castellano. Following his ordination, he served as the master of novices for the province and became a professor of theology. His close association with the Jesuits lasted until 1992, when, according to Wikipedia, “Jesuit authorities asked Bergoglio not to live in Jesuit residences due to ongoing tensions with leaders and scholars; concerns about his ‘dissent,’ views on Catholic orthodoxy, and opposition to liberation theology; and his role as auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires. As a bishop, he was no longer subject to his Jesuit superior. From then on, he no longer visited Jesuit houses and was in ‘virtual estrangement from the Jesuits’ until after his election as pope.” As he rose in rank among Catholic clergy, he continued to serve the poor and needy. He regularly celebrated the Holy Thursday foot-washing ritual in jails, hospitals, retirement homes, and slums.
On 28 February 1998, he was installed as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. Three years later, on 21 February 2001, Pope John Paul II made Archbishop Bergoglio a cardinal, assigning him the title of cardinal priest of San Roberto Bellarmino. When he turned seventy-five, in December 2011, Cardinal Bergoglio submitted his resignation as archbishop of Buenos Aires to Pope Benedict XVI as required by canon law. Since he had no coadjutor archbishop, he stayed in office, waiting for the Vatican to appoint a replacement. After Pope Benedict announced his resignation on 11 February 2013 (effective 28 February 2013), Cardinal Bergoglio was elected to serve as the Supreme Pontiff during the conclave that selected Pope Benedict’s successor. Pope Francis assumed his new role on 13 March 2013.
Pope Francis frequently used the term “accompaniment” to describe a style of ministry and leadership focused on walking alongside people, especially those facing challenges, rather than lecturing or directing from above. He wrote, “We need a Church capable of walking at people’s side, of doing more than simply listening to them; a Church which accompanies them on their journey. … I would like all of us to ask ourselves today: are we still a Church capable of warming hearts?”
Pope Francis was certainly capable of warming hearts. Writing about the passing of a loved one, the late American poet Charles Bukowski once penned, “There is a place in the heart that will never be filled. A space. And even during the best moments and the greatest times we will know it. We will know it more than ever. There is a place in the heart that will never be filled. And we will wait and wait in that space.” Pope Francis certainly leaves a place that will never be filled; however, he would not want us to wait in that space. He would want us to look for places to serve people. People who need someone to accompany them as they traverse life’s greatest challenges.
When Cardinal Kevin Farrell announced the passing of Pope Francis, he noted, “His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of … God.[3]
Footnotes
[1] Nicole Winfield, “Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff who ministered with a charming, humble style, dies at 88,” Associated Press, 21 April 2025.
[2] Anthony Faiola, “Pope Francis, whose humility and empathy reshaped the papacy, dies at 88,” The Washington Post, 21 April 2025.
[3] Cybele Mayes-Osterman, John Bacon, Susan Miller, Bart Jansen, and Jorge L. Ortiz, “Pope Francis died of a stroke and irreversible heart failure, Vatican says,” USA Today, 21 April 2025.
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