Pope Francis I's Passing

This Easter Monday morning I woke to the news that our Holy Father Francis I had been called home to the Lord.  While surprised by the news, I am not saddened, for Our Lord has called his faithful servant home to Heaven.  

 
Yesterday we celebrated the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior.  Yesterday we celebrated how the Son of God triumphed over sin, death and evil.  Today, we celebrate how our Holy Father Francis I has joined in Jesus’s triumph over death.  

 
I was surprised by the Pope’s passing.  His health had been in decline for some time now. He had been hospitalized earlier this year but in recent days he seemed to have improved significantly.  I expected him to be with us for a few more years.

 
Just yesterday the Pope appeared in public on Easter Sunday.  Though present, his annual “Urbi Et Orbi” message was delivered by Archbishop Diego Ravelli, the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations.  In part, his message declared:

 
“In the Lord’s Paschal Mystery, death and life contended in a stupendous struggle, but the Lord now lives forever (cf. Easter Sequence). He fills us with the certainty that we too are called to share in the life that knows no end, when the clash of arms and the rumble of death will be heard no more. Let us entrust ourselves to him, for he alone can make all things new (cf. Rev. 21:5)!”

 
Francis I’s papacy was not without controversy.  I was disappointed by a number of his actions as Pope including his obsession with climate change, his suppression of the Traditional Latin Mass, and his inadequate response to the persecution of Christians and Muslim Uyghurs by Communist China. In addition, he promoted pro-LGBTQ-etc. clergy to positions of prominence within the Vatican and the American Catholic Church while suppressing conservative Catholic leaders like Bishop Joseph Strickland, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano and Bishop Daniel Fernandez Torres.   During the global COVID pandemic, he acquiesced while churches around the world were unlawfully closed by civil authorities and the faithful denied direct access to the Eucharist.  

 
That notwithstanding, Pope Francis I led a life dedicated to the Church and the Thrice Holy God.  Throughout his life, he was known for his compassion and concern for the poor, which he continued with unabated vigor even as he rose to the highest position within the Church.  

 
His Papacy was particularly historic as he was the first Pope from the Americas and the first Jesuit to serve as Pope.  

 
“His entire life was dedicated to the service of God and his Church,” said Cardinal Kevin Farrell, camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, said when he announced the Pope’s passing.  “He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially for the poorest and most marginalized.” 

If Pope Francis is not already with Our Lord, I pray that he soon will be.  Amen.