Pope Francis: In Memoriam; The People’s Pope
Pope Francis passed away on April 21, 2025. His life was a remarkable journey. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1936. His parents were Italian immigrants. He was a brilliant student and declared his priestly vocation in his late teens. He was ordained as a Jesuit and became the Jesuit Province Superior in Argentina at the age of 36- a meteoric rise in clerical hierarchy terms. He presided over the Argentine Jesuits throughout the difficult years of dictatorship, the “missing” and the “liberation theology” movement. He clashed with many Jesuit priests over policy and was eventually replaced as Superior. He was exiled to a rural area. He later returned to Buenos Aires and ascended to the position of Archbishop in 1998. He was then named a Cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2001. He was elected Pope by the College of Cardinals on March 13, 2013. He served as head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City for 12 years. He was an active and influential Pope although the passage of time will bring the ultimate legacy into clearer focus. There is a duality to my emotional and intellectual response to his departure. He left a compelling personal impression, but his tenure was complex, complicated and controversial. Definitely, a man of critical importance- a humble and spiritual man who struggled to navigate the challenges of his times. Leading the Catholic Church that is plagued by internal polarisation in a very secular world is not a task for the faint of heart. He made a good faith effort.
I admired Pope Francis. Pope John XXIII has always been my Papal “hero”, but Jose Mario Bergoglio also possessed very appealing qualities. He was a positive symbol of humanity. He possessed a quiet and confident intelligence, although he was not a theologian. He projected emotional warmth and sincerity. He was an ideal “public” face for the church in its ecumenical interactions with the outside world. He was kind, decent and soulful. He was virtuous, honourable and dignified. His combination of the basic virtues gave him moral authority. In certain respects he was visionary and he strived to be a teacher. He projected strength, happiness and peace.
His personality drove the Church agenda. He sought to connect the Vatican with 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide. He travelled widely and was comfortable in Asia and Africa. He focused his ministry on the marginal, disregarded and dispossessed. He promised the Church would be a welcoming place. He took the name Francis- an affirmation of his love for St Francis Assisi- the nobleman who cast aside his material possessions to serve the poor. He was optimistic about the role of the Church in the contemporary world. He sought to change hearts and reinvigorate and restore an institution that had become defensive and sullen. He wore simple vestments and chose to live in a one bedroom apartment instead of the gilded Papal Apartment in the Apostolic Palace. He visited an immigration holding centre in Lampedusa as his first act as Pope and never ceased his efforts for humane treatment of migrants. He embraced disfigured people, visited the prisons and kissed the feet of non believers. His symbolic acts of charity were moral examples to all- particularly in the early years of his Papacy.
He did believe in doctrine, but his primary intellectual characteristic was his embrace of the Jesuit concept of “discernment.” Always listen and observe; be open to all forms of positive human interaction; make daily life a learning experience. Avoid rigidity and certainty and conduct yourself with an awareness that humanity is essentially a MESS! Conversations and dialogue about policy and principles is a good thing- not something to be feared by leadership. He openly and courageously attacked the Roman Curia for its complacency, materialism and corruption. He was a "Sermon on the Mount” and “Beatitudes“ type of Pope. He recognised there were “sinners" everywhere, including in the Church itself.
As a graduate of a Jesuit University, I have always been partial to the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises. Pope Francis was a proud Jesuit despite his public disagreements with his fellow Argentinian Jesuits. Their fallout had staying power. From 2001 to 2013, he never visited the Jesuit House during his visits to Rome. The public reconciliation between he and his order only occurred after his Papal election. However, even in his wilderness years, he never stopped preaching and living the Jesuit message. The basic mantra is to live an active life surrounded by prayer and good deeds. Engage the world, but remain contemplative. Avoid artificial attachment to status, money and power. Lead and listen! Honor the dignity of work. Be intellectually curious and intense in your faith. As a good Jesuit, he openly acknowledged the challenges presented by the modern world to the Catholic Church and its traditions. He wanted the church to accept the modern world, but fill a role that would transform the modern world by applying the universal message from Jesus and the Gospels. He explicitly rejected any effort to make the Church more like the modern world. He did not want the Church to mirror modernity; He wanted the Church to make modernity more humane. His version of Papal leadership was to insist the Church be true to itself. He had no interest in the Church morphing into another “feel good” movement. He frequently stated, “The Church is not an NGO.” He aggressively promoted the “Preferential Option for the Poor” as a core doctrine and that made many Catholics uncomfortable.
Let’s defer our analysis of how all this turned out. It is important to recall the state of the Church when Francis became Pope. His predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI had just resigned- the first Pope EVER to leave under such circumstances. The Church was in a defensive crouch after the scope of the clerical sexual scandal was disclosed worldwide. The Vatican was subject to every high profile media leaks and fiascos. Corruption and financial irregularities were cannon fodder for critics of the Church. Priestly vocations were in retreat and church attendance, donations and collections were collapsing. A distressing situation for a venerable institution. Pope Benedict was intellectual and spiritual, but events appeared to overwhelm his skill set. He was also a bit of a “scold.” He reacted to events by doubling down on his authority over doctrinal matters. He reinforced the importance of loyal and unquestioning adherence by the faithful to “rules” and “regulations.” To quote Pope Benedict.
“The faithful must accept not only the infallible magisterium. They are to give
the religious submissions of intellect and will to the teachings of the Supreme
Pontiff in faith and morals.”
It was a no apologies assertion of doctrinal clarity. The fundamental questions were deemed to be settled. It was a top-down approach- Papal pronouncements to be followed by clerical and lay people. Obedience and compliance mandatory with no place for dissent. Pope John Paul II had also very focused on doctrine and was not very accommodating to suggestions or proposals regarding, sexuality, gender, LGBT etc. Clarity can be good, but the moral force of the Church’s message on these matters was severely undermined by the moral weakness of the messenger. The clerical hierarchy had no credibility. The depraved evil of clerical pedophilia and the Magisterium’s sustained incompetence and indifference in handling the issue had destroyed the reputation of the Church globally. A catastrophe- God’s representative on earth had become the “Emperor with no Clothes.” The decision making and policy model wasn’t working because the faithful didn’t trust the leadership. Pope Francis walked into this very difficult situation.
There was tremendous enthusiasm for Pope Francis at the beginning of his Papacy. He was described as “The Great Reformer”- a potential agent of radical change that would re-energize the Church and return its to it proper place as a centre of moral authority in the world. He achieved great “street cred” with the acts of humility described above. His transparency was welcome after years of secrecy and intrigue. He was comfortable discussing the most divisive issues. On gays, he stated.
“Every man and woman must have a window in their life where they can turn their hope and where they can see the dignity of God. And being a homosexual is not a crime, it is human condition. Who am I to judge if they are seeking the Lord in good faith.”
He was open to church blessings of gay civil unions, increased roles for women and married priests in underserved rural communities. He ultimately made no doctrinal changes in these areas, but the atmosphere surrounding them changed immensely. People previously identified as “outsiders", “sinners”, or “disordered” felt more comfortable within the confines of the Church. Inevitably, the spirit of “openness" and “inclusivity” generated significant backlash. Conservatives clerics began to utter such provocations as “heresy” and “schism.” Synods became unproductive debating societies. Pope Francis upset both ends of the ideological spectrum. Conservatives did not trust him- thinking he was a secret Marxist intent on destroying sacred Church traditions and beliefs. Progressives were disappointed by the disconnection between the forward looking rhetoric and the absence of concrete change. The Catholic Church remains frozen in time on many of these sensitive issues. There are also areas where I totally disagreed with the Pope. I believe his knowledge of basic economics is minimal. He seems to loath capitalism and once said, “no neoliberal”, the South American socialist or Peronist shorthand for “free market” advocates could truly be a Christian. He spoke often of “sharing” and “redistribution” in the face of societal inequality. Growth and market dynamism never really entered his vocabulary and he ignored the strong evidence that globalisation has lifted more people out of poverty than any economic system in history. He clearly distrusted wealth accumulation. He offended many successful American Catholics with this rhetoric. I simply think he was wrong on this stuff. I did appreciate his environmentalism though.
Perhaps it was predictable that a Pope that commenced his term with such joy, optimism and hope would be brought to earth by reality. My admiration for Pope Francis as a human being is accompanied by an unease that the Catholic Church remains an institution in distress at the conclusion of his Papacy. Perhaps, the nature of the times. Perhaps, he was not that politically skilled. The bottom line is that his successor will confront many of the same issues that frustrated Pope Francis. The new Pope should be an optimist like Francis and perhaps be more adept at moving the ship of state long in a positive direction. Crises can be opportunities. Today, we are seemingly overwhelmed by war, ethnic cleansing, religious division, awful political leadership in major countries and fears of technology and artificial intelligence. Perhaps, a confident and resurgent church can play a helpful role in navigating the “big” questions. We can hope.
Finally, a couple of reading recommendations if you are curious about Pope Francis and his views. His own words can educate you better than any critiques from me. I recommend his encyclical Laudato Si’.It is an elegant document confidently asserting the religious obligation for humanity to protect the environment and our ecological systems. An unvarnished acceptance of climate change as an existential threat to humanity. The Catholic faithful must accept moral responsibility to preserve the planet. Again, an undercurrent of his strong distrust of development and corporate plunder. Pope Francis was a natural writer and his prose is lyrical even when discussing dry concepts. The second recommendation is his address to the US Congress in 2015. It is brilliant and a direct challenge to America to execute its special power in a manner protective of all global citizens. He cites Lincoln, MLK, Thomas Merton and Dorothy Day as moral examples. He eloquently embraces our “common home” as worthy of protection against environmental degradation. He cites the biblical proverb, “Do unto Others as you would have them do unto you” in his emotional and poignant plea to treat immigrants and refugees with respect, dignity and love. He spoke of dreamers, freedom fighters, solidarity, subsidiarity, service, healing and mutual respect. We should listen to him.
REST IN PEACE- JOSE MARIO BERGOGLIO-POPE FRANCIS.
