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To You we come, Angelic Pastor - Smelling like your Sheep, never away from your flock.
In You we see the gentle Redeemer - a barefoot, a shatty man, away from luxuries, a Sinner.
The Holy Heir of true and holy Faith; a Faith of the poor, the marginalized, the less fortunate
Comfort and refuge of those who believe and fight - for "Everyone!, Everyone!, Everyone!" can!
An obituary to The 265th Successor of St. Peter, 266th Bishop of The Holy Roman Petrine Ministry, 8th Head of State of The Vatican City, Cardinal-Priest of The Holy Roman Church, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, provincial superior, member of The Order of Jesus; His Holiness Francis(cus) (Jorge Mario Bergoglio); The Pope of The Poor, The Peripheries, The Marginalized, the Minorities, 'Angel of Peace'.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born on 17 December 1936 in Flores, Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was the eldest of five children of Mario Jose Bergoglio, an accountant from Piedmont - whose family fled from fascist Italy in 1929, narrowly escaping a deadly shipwreck - and housewife Regina Maria Sivori, of Northern Italian origin. At school Bergoglio excelled in chemistry, his spare time dedicated to football (his lifelong favorite team was San Lorenzo), tango & girls. Graduate as a chemical technician he started working in a Laboraroty's food sector; having also been a bouncher in a bar and janitor in a nightcllub during his student years. Jorge credited his faith to his grandmother, who taught him how to pray. However he was so inspired from a sermon by visiting priest Enrique Pozzoli when he went for confession at the local church, that he decided to enter the Society of Jesus as a trainee in March of 1958. After undergoing a surgery for severe, life-threatening pneumonia & having three cysts removed alongside part of his lung at the age of 21, Bergoglio decided to enter the Jesuit seminary in order to become a priest. He was ordained in 1969, having in the meantime gained a philisophy degree from The Catholic University of Buenos Aires, (& having taught literature & psychology teaching at school & college in the mid. 1960s).
Once he completed his spiritual training as Jesuit, Bergoglio was nominated as provincial superior of the order in Argentina, a rank of religious authority, in July 1973, aged 36. His six-year-term overlapped with the military dictatorship (1976-1983) of Jorge Rafael Videla; and its repressive "Dirty War", during which 30,000 dissidents disappeared, never to be found again. Bergoglio was later accused of cooperating with the military junta, or not doing enough to avoid kiddnaping of two fellow Jesuit priests. The allegations would not be proven, while in a future interview Jorge would recall his efforts to save the lives of Jesuits Yorio & Jalics, who were released after five months of captivity and torture. He furthermore helped a fellow escape Argentina by handing him a copy of his documents, but failed to use his authority to shield the abovementioned priests from the regime's watchful eye. Bergoglio didn't seek reappointment after his term as provincial superior ended in 1979. He became rector at the Philosophical & Theological Faculty of San Miguel in Cordoba (where he had studied) in 1980, spending some time in Ireland (at The Milltown Institute of Theology & Philosophy in Dublin). In 1986 he was replaced by a more progressive Jesuit, deepening his personal "exile" from the order, and having been in a schism with most of its prominent members. Jorge Bergoglio spent several months researching for his doctorate thesis research in Frankfurt, Germany (at Sankt Georgen Graduate School in Philosophy and Theology), but never completed them. He used to deliver Holy Liturgy for his classmates every morning.
In 1992, after several years of internal crisis & enstragement, Bergoglio was named an Auxiliary Bishop of Buenos Aires, consentrated by The Archbishop Cardinal Antonio Quarracino. His humble lifestyle & partoral approach to religious service increased his popularity, nevertheless his opposition to the 'liberation theology' made him estranged from Argentinian Jesuits for his entire Episcopal life. He rose ranks in 1997, when Cardinal Quarracino named him Coadjutor (his main assistant) in 1997 and took over as Archbishop of Buenos Aires following the latter's death in 1998. In his new role Jorge Bergoglio turned the Metropolitan Archdiocese's focus on the poor, distributing them food and clothes from his predecessor's office, and doubling the presence of priests in the marginal, shanty towns of the capital (although his high spending & selling the archdiocese's bank shares nearly led it to bankruptcy). At the consistory on 21 February 2001, Pope John Paul II made Archbishop Jorge Bergoglio a Cardinal of The Roman Catholic Church, appointing him to several administrative positions of The Roman Curia. As Cardinal Bergoglio continued his simple lifestyle, opting to live in a small apartment, cooking his own meals, using public transport, and keeping most of his episcopal vestments and official standard. Jorge was associated with the Communion and Liberation evangelical lay movement, and generally held on conservative principles regarding same-sex marriage and the role of women in the Church; however he spoke out against the use of force on peaceful protesters and requested beatification of the victims of the massacre in San Patricio Church, performed by the military junta in 1976. In 2005 Cardinal Bergoglio was elected President of The Argentine Episcopal Conference for three years (2005-2008), while in 2011 upon turning 75, he submitted his resignation to Pope Benedict XVI as required by the canon law; he stayed in the position because there was no appointed Coadjutor by The Catholic Church to replace him.
Following the death of Pope John Paul II, as member of The College of Cardinals, Bergoglio took part in the Papal Conclave of 2005, that elected Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger to the Papacy. A papabile during The Conclave, Cardinal Elector Bergoglio was the frontrunner, according to reports & a wittness's diary, withdrawing from the final race (after a one-third majority) so that not to prolong the Conclave. By the time he reached the retirement age, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was no longer considered Papabile, but participated in the 2013 Papal Conclave following the resignation of Benedict XVI, due to his age and internal scandals of The Catholic Church. In the pre-conclave meetings, he delivered a speech warning that an inward-turning Church becomes sick & narcissistic, and suggested what would be a vision of a pared-down, hands-on papacy. This foresight, along with his humility, simple lifestyle, and closeness to the marginalized members of society won over the Cardinals' vote & elevated Bergoglio to The Papacy after the fifth ballot in the evening of March 13, 2013. The 76-year-old was the first Jesuit and first Argentinian to be elected as Successor of Saint Peter. He became also the first non-European Pontiff in nearly 13 centuries (since the death of Syrian Gregory III in 741). Moments after his election, Cardinal Claudio Hummes from Brazil hugged him and said: "Don't forget the poor". Hence was the Papal name Cardinal Bergoglio choose moments later: FRANCIS. After St. Francis of Assisi, a medieval Catholic friar, founder of The Franciscan Order, who led a life of poverty, turning against luxury and powers & becoming an itinerant preacher. In his first appearance at the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, the new Pope - who preferred calling himself just Bishop of Rome - wore a white cassosk, instead of the red mozzetta, used by his predecessors; he used the same iron pectoral cross as a bishop and choose his piscatory (fisherman's) ring to be from silver, not from gold, signifying a "no frills" papacy. The night of his election Pope Francis joined the rest of the cardinals in the same bus they arrived on to their hotel appartments, insisting to pay the bill himself; he would make the second floor of Guesthouse, Casa Santa Marta, as his permanent residence, avoiding the luxuries & enclosure of The Apostolic Palace.
At his first balcony appearance in front of thousands of people, Pope Francis prayed for the great spirit and fraternity to the whole world, and declared that he was an "outsider from the end of the world" who wanted to "walk together and work together" with the crowds, rather than tell them what to do. His Papal Inauguration took place on 19 March 2013, during which Francis celebrated the Mass focusing on the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the model role for all fathers, in front of dozens of state, political & religious leaders from around the world. It also became known that once elected, The Pope received congratulations from the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel while standing, forgoing to sit on the Papal Chair. Determined to end corruption in the inner circles of the Church, Pope Francis abolished the bonuses of cardinals & employees affiliated to the Vatican Bank. He created a Council of Cardinal Advisers to help him restructure the Roman Curia from inside & Institute for The Works of Religion for a more transparent Vatican Bank. The Holy Father followed up with the ritual of food washing on Holy Thursday, which he had done since he was Bishop, washing and kissing the feet of twelve juvenile prisoners, as a sign of his beliefs in repentative justice. In his first 'Urbi et Orbi' Easter Address, His Holiness spoke against the "greed looking for easy gain" of capitalism, consumerism and over-development, while condemning the "uniquitous exploitation of natural resources". The address also focused on world peace, specifically mentioning the conflicting peripheries in The Middle East, Africa, as well as South & North Korea. Francis published his first encyclical Lumen fidei (The Light of Faith), which was largly edited by his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, in June 2013. Later the same year, he published his first apostolic exhortation Evangelii gaudium, often seen as the manifesto of his Papacy. It called on all members of The Church to overcome the complacencies of its hierarchy and "embark on a new chapter of evangelism", finding new paths of missionary & pastoral convention, as well as creativity & opennes to share 'The Joy of The Gospel'. The Pontiff would often repeat that he preferred "a church bruised, hurting & dirty out on the streets", to "a church unhealthy due to confinement, clinging to its own security", and that the shepherd should have "the smell of the sheep".
Pope Francis' first visit as Head of The Roman Catholic Church was at the Island of Lampedusa, a land of agony & shore of death for fleeing migrants. He celebrated a mass on an altar made from recycled migrant boats and condemned the indifference towards those in need. Centers of detention of refugees, deemed at "concentration camps" would become a nemesis of The Pope; he will visit several times the island of Lesbos (2016, 2021), a refugee center, calling out for a "reaweakening of conscience" in wealthy nations and find ways to assimilate them, instead of "sending them back". He would later clash on the issue with far-right populist politicians, saying that building walls instead of bridges is inhumane. Pope Francis made 47 Apostolic visits during his twelve year of Papacy, travelling to 68 countries. His journeys to places with a huge Catholic community include The Philippines (2015), Chile, Peru & Ireland (2018), Brazil (2019) & Hungary (2021, 2023). In September 2015, Francis became the first Pope to visit Cuba since 1998. He met with its Communist leadership, after brokering its restoration of diplomatic relations with The US, announced in late 2014. Next, he paid an official visit to The United States of America, and Addressed its joint Session of Congress, reminding of the values the country's bases hold on, and publicly making a plea to abolish the death penalty. In contrast to the policies of the previous popes on that topic, he revised the Catechism of The Catholic Church in 2018, formalizing death penalty as "inadmissible" as an "attack in the inviolability & dignity of a person" "in the light of the Gospel". Pope Francis's second encyclical, Laudato Si ('Praise be to You'), was published in June 2015, and translated to eight languages. Its content, urgint the people of the world to take "a swift & united global action" against the environmental degradation & global warming, was broadly studied by the world's politicians, ahead of the decisive step to limit global greenhouse gas emissions, in The Paris Climate Accords (which followed The COP21 2015). Answering to a reporters' question on his way back from a trip, about homosexuals in The Catholic Church, Francis said: "If someone is gay and he searches for The Lord and has good will, who I am to judge?"
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In 2014 Pope Francis launched The Synod of The Family, concluded in 2015, during which significant problems, facing nowadays families - including domestic violence, polygamy, cohabitation, poverty & abuse - were discussed. In his post-synodal Apostolic exhortation, Amoris laetitia (The Joy of Love), His Holiness encouraged pastors & laypeople to accompany families in need, and instoduced the sacramental blessings of Reconciliation and The Eucharist to those divorced & remarried, causing widespread reactions from a number of senior religious figures. Decreeing in a papal bull Misericordiae Vultus (in the face of Mercy), The Holy Father Francis declared a Special Jubilee Year of The Mercy, which ran from December 2015 to November 2016. "Missionaries of The Mercy" - specially qualified priests, usually limited to The Holy See's Apostolic Penitentiary - were dispatched in every Catholic diocese to forgive severe sins, while at the end of this year, The Roman Pontiff established The World Day of The Poor (through his Apostolic Letter: Misericordia et Misera). It was one of the Seals of The Franciscan Ministry - 'A Poor Church of The Poor'. Young People have been another cause of Pope Francis's particular interest and committment. He participated in the trianual (once in every three years) World Youth Day (Rio de Janeiro - 2013, Krakow - 2016, Panama City - 2019, & Lisbon - 2023); the second synod of his Papacy (in 2018) dedicated to Young People. It aimed in accompanying the young people towards maturity and assisting their encounter with God, so that they could actively participate in building up "the Church and society". The Apostolic exhortation that followed, Gaudete et exsultate ('Rejoice and be Glad'), consisted a call of universal holiness. From the very first years of his papacy, Francis surpassed the record of 843 people, brought to sainthood in a single pontificate. Notable Saints created by The 266th Pope were three of his predecessors (John Paul II, John XXIII - 2014 & Paul VI - 2018) and Mother Teresa of Calcutta (2016). Another predecessor (Pope John Paul I) was made Venerable (2017) & Blessed (2022), while two new 'Doctors of The Church' were also declared.
.jpg "Canonization of St. John XXIII & John Paul II, 27/04/2014")
The Holy Father sided The Roman Catholic Church closer to those who had been mistreated. However, his good will didn't always translate to success. In 2018, on visit to Chile, he was criticized for supporting Bishop Juan Barros, who reportedly covered up sexual abuses of children. Having previously dissmissed the allegations, Francis ordered an investigation, which proved the accusationg, leading to the resignation of Barros and other two Chilean Bishops. His Holiness acknowledged his "grave mistake" of judgement, and apologised to the victims. Yet, his biggest flow was still ahead. For while Pope Francis was visiting Ireland - where church community had suffered from numerous sexual abuses in the past - a former papal nuncio to The United States published an 11-page letter against His Holiness and other Vatican Officials for covering up the case of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Theodore McCarrick had been widely accused of personally molesting both adults & children before he became archbishop of Washington from which he had retired in 2006. Pope Francis stayed silent on the nuncio's calling for resignation and ordered an investigation that confirmed McCarrick's accusations and obliged the latter to resign from the College of Cardinals. Those developments led to a summit on sexual abuse in 2019, and the subsequent abolition of "pontifical secrecy" in cases of sexual abuse, so that clerics don't need the Authorization of The Vatican and directly report to law enforcement authorities. The third Synod of Bishops during Pope Francis' Reign was for The Pan-Amazon Region. It focused on the evangelization efforts of the 2.8-million population 400 tribes across 10 Latin American countries throughout The Amazon basin. But it didn't miss misinpretations when carved images of a pregnant Amazonian woman, symbol of festility & family - referred by The Pope as Pachamama - were displayed in a Basilica near the Vatican. Women notwithstanding, but a block of conservative, including Cardinal Raymond Burke - who was limited from senior posts to The Order of Malta for causing trouble but involved in a scandal that caused the downfall of its leadership - was directly challenging Francis' authority by their "dubia" (doubtful questions, submitted to him in 2022).
.jpg "With The Polish Prime Minister (& his family)")
Interfaith dialogue & peace were among Pope Francis' biggest causes. His Apostolic visits of major significance included: Jerusalem (2015), Bosnia and Herzegovina (2015), Egypt and Myanmar (2017), Iraq (2021) & South Sudan (2023). He met with various religious leaders, from The (Buddhist) Supreme Patriarch of Thailand (2019) to The (orthodox) Patriarch of Moscow & all Russia (2016), The Pope of Alexandria (2013) and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (2016). In 2019 The Pope paid a historic visit to The United Arab Emirates, where he jointly signed the "Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together", along with Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayed, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, in Abu Dhabi. Two years later, in his first trip during the covid pandemic, His Holiness met with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani (of The Shia Muslim Community) in Iraq (March 2021), and signed a joint statement against extremism and promoting peace. Standing firm against religious extremism & terrorism, Pope Francis visited both Jewish & Muslim Holy Sites in Jerusalem & The West Bank (2014) inviting both The Presidents of Israel & Palestinian Authority (recognized by The Holy See as a State) at The Vatican Gardens for a joint prayer summit for Peace. He spoke out against antisemitism, and expressed his wish that The Palestinian President becomes "an angel of peace". Another country with which The Vatican improved relations under Francis as Sovereign Head of State was China. In 2018 he approved a provisional agreement, that would allow The Chinese government appoint bishops through the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, but without a previous papal approval, as it was the norm. Even though The Vatican was one of the only twelve states to recognise Taiwan, The Pope preferred a bad-terms dialogue to no dialogue at all. At the same time he lamented the oppression of minorities in China & elswhere (Uyughur, Rohingya, Yazidi, etc). He called for leaders to lay down the weapons, and engage into dialogue (he would even kneel in front of South Sudan's leaders of two infighting parties in plea for peace during their visit in Vatican in 2019). However, he avoided taking sides in major conflicts & naming aggressors (in case of Russia, waging the full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022), but rather focused on the suffering populations, and pushed the involved sides towards dialogue in difficult terms.
The two living popes aged as the world faced the crisis of Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Perhaps the most memorable appearance of Pope Francis is at an empty St. Peter's Square, for an extraordinary benediction, homily (on 'calming the storm' from the Gospel of Mark) & 'Urbi et Orbi' address, in the rain. During the lockdowns His Holiness celebrated daily masses every morning, livestreamed from The Chapel of Casa Santa Martha, while he directed the creation of a special Commission, listening to the concerns of The faithful during difficult times. The Holy Father supported vaccinations for common good in 2021, and advocated for a 'universal basic wage' for the post-pandemic recovery. He wrote his third encyclical Fratelli tutti (on fraternity and social friendship) in October 2020. In June 2021 His Holiness signed the Pascite gregem Dei, a new apostolic constitution (legislation), strengthening the penalties of sexual abuse, but, much to the dismay of progressive women, categorically prohibiting their ordination. A month later, The Pontiff issued the Traditionis custodes (Guardians of the Tradition) apostolic letter, in which he imposed new restrictions on the use of Tridentine (latin) Mass during Catholic liturgies - reversing the Summorum Pontificum of his predecessor (who died at the end of 2022, aged 95). Finally, in December 2023 a declaration (Fiducia supplicans) was approved by Pope Francis, allowing among other things, the non-liturgical blessings of same-sex couples (labelled as "irregular relationships"), as well as those unmarried, or civilly divorced. In October 2023, Pope Francis presided over the Synod of Synodality, also called the culmination of his papacy and among the most important events in the Church since the Second Vatican Council. He issued his final apostolic exhortation, Laudate Deum, ahead of it. Women, who have been appointed to key positions of The Roman Curia during Francis' Papacy, could cast their vote for the first time in this, male-dominated, summit. Following its conclusion (on 27 October 2024), Pope Francis ratified the final document of the synod, and published it for implementation, instead of decreeing another exhortation of his own.
.jpg "With The Brazilian President")
.jpg "With The Indonesian President")
Convinced in a wheelchair since 2022 (due to knee pain & sciatica) Pope Francis passed to a 'slower' phase of his Papacy. The Octogenarian Pontiff underwent two major surgeries (colon surgery for siverticulitis - 2021, & abnominal surgery due to hernia - 2023), having occasionally to postpone (2022) or cancel (COP 2023) his visits abroad. He dissmissed rumors of resignation, as long as he would remain mentally capable. In July 2022, in a historic visit to Canada, The Holy Father formally apologised to its indigenous communities for the abuses made during forceful assimiliation to The Catholic Church, especially of Canadian indigenous children in residential schools. His Holiness expressed sorrow, shame & indignation over his church's past abuses, calling them a "cultural genocide". In 2023 The Bishop of Rome visited the Democratic Republic of Congo & South Sudan, and participated, alongside The Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby & Moderator of The Church of Scotland Iain Greenshields, in an ecumenical prayer service. Later the same year The Pope undertook a historic visit to Mongolia (with the smallest-known Catholic Community), while in 2024, he made the largest official trip in his entire papacy, embarking on a 12-day trip & travelling through more than 20,000 miles, visiting: Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor & Singapore. The Pope also addressed the G7 Summit (Italy, 2024), warning on the impact of unlimited development of AI (artificial intelligence) on human dignity; but never returned back to his native Argentine as Pontiff. By the end of 2024, Pope Francis had created 163 cardinals from 76 countries, in 10 consistories - 110 of whom are eligible to vote for his successor. They are more diversified than from previous papacies, with a higher representation in Asian & African continent than before. In January 2025 Pope Francis released his autobiography, "Hope", the first living Pontiff to do so. It is namesake with The Jubilee Year of The Holy Roman Church for 2025, which he inaugurated. In his last appearance on Easter Sunday, Francis appealed for ceacefire in Gaza, return of the Israeli hostages, and a lasting peace, based on two-state solutions. He was in daily contact with The Holy Family Church in Gaza Strip, and asked to posthumously donate his famour Popemobile as a mobile health clinic for the children of Gaza.
He died at 7:35'am, on Easter Monday, 21 April 2025, aged 88, after 12 years in the rudder of The Petrine Ministry.
Sources:
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-04/pope-francis-death-peace-legacy-appeals.html
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/262379/pope-francis-the-pope-of-the-peripheries-who-shook-up-the-church
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Francis
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/21/pope-francis-obituary
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/21/europe/pope-francis-obituary-intl/index.html
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253852/a-timeline-of-pope-francis-12-years-as-pope
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c98zxx13d3go
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-04/the-pope-of-mercy.html
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62x0ej1n7eo
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-05/the-popemobile-of-peace-pope-francis-final-gift-to-gaza.html
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%20(1).jpg "Translation of Pope Francis' mortal remains from Casa Santa Martha to St. Peter's Basilica, 23/04/2025")
.jpg "The body of the late Pope Francis, lying-in-state")
.jpg "Funeral Procession through the streets of Rome.")
_(cropped).jpg "Procession reaches The Basilica of St. Maria Maggiore")
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