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 Pope Francis: Beginning of Pontificate (Scott 1525, 2013) 50th Anniversary of Ordination (Scott 1728, 2019) First Pastoral Visit, Lampedusa, Italy, 2013 (Scott 1819, 2023) The world was stunned to receive the news this morning of the passing of Pope Francis, who died early on Easter Monday at his apartment in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta at the age of 88. The announcement came from the Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church: “At 7:35 this morning, the bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of God and his Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially for the poorest and most marginalized.”The news of the death of Pope Francis is rather shocking, given that he had been showing steady improvement from a critical lung infection that had hospitalized him in February and March. In the days following his release on March 23, he was seen rarely in public, but recently he had been out and about. Ten days ago, he made an impromptu visit to Saint Peter’s Basilica. He then visited the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore on Saturday, April 12, and presided over a service at the Regina Coeli Prison on Holy Thursday. Yesterday, Easter Sunday, he met briefly with Vice President J.D. Vance before appearing at the loggia of Saint Peter’s Basilica to greet the throngs of people in Saint Peter’s Square, wishing all a “Happy Easter”. He presented his annual “Urbi et Orbi” blessing (which was read by a clergy member with the pope seated beside him), and then toured the square in the “Popemobile”. This would be the last public appearance of Pope Francis. Born in Argentina on December 17, 1936, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was the eldest of five children born to Italian immigrants to the South American country. In 1969, he was ordained as a priest and would eventually be created cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II. He served in a variety of pastoral roles in Argentina, eventually being named the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998. He would serve in that role until 2013, when he was elected the 265th successor to Saint Peter upon the historic retirement of Pope Benedict XVI. Francis was the first pope from the New World of the Americas, and the first Jesuit to be elected pope. Known of his sense of humor, he stated during his introduction to the world following his election: "You all know that the duty of the Conclave was to give a bishop to Rome. It seems that my brother Cardinals have come almost to the ends of the Earth to get him ... but here we are. I thank you for the welcome that has come from the diocesan community of Rome."During his papacy, the well-traveled pontiff embarked on 46 pilgrimage visits to 61 countries, with the longest and most ambitious having occurred quite recently, in the fall of 2024, when he visited the Far East and Oceania over a period of 11 days. His last foreign trip took place on December 15, 2024, when he visited the French island of Corsica. At age 88, Pope Francis was the oldest pope, while still serving, since Pope Leo XIII, who was aged 93 when he died in 1903. During his papacy he was plagued with a variety of health issues. He suffered from gastrointestinal and pulmonary issues over the years (he had a portion of one lung removed as a young man), and he suffer through a case of double pneumonia during his recent hospitalization. History will eventually judge the successes and controversies of the pontificate of Pope Francis. His tenor at times was more political than that of his predecessors, as he tackled issues of the environment, worldwide immigration, and war, as well as issues of Church doctrine. The last five years of his pontificate saw him deal with the COVID pandemic, mass migration across Europe and the United States (as examples), wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and other issues of global importance. His convening of the Synod on Synodality, which served as a call for a more inclusive and "democratic" Church, was both hailed and reviled. Again, history will eventually be the judge. Funeral plans for Pope Francis are incomplete at this time, but one can envision a simple ceremony in keeping with his papal experiences. His wish to be entombed at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, rather than Saint Peter's Basilica, was made public in 2023. The only scheduling announcement made by the Vatican this morning was that the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis, planned for this coming Sunday (April 27) has been delayed. REFERENCES: |
