A Word On Pope Francis’s Passing

Pope Francis waving at pilgrims from the Popemobil — image via Pixabay

I woke up this morning, and found that Pope Francis had left us.

I don’t even know what to say.

I’ve already written what I expected would be his obituary, and then he rallied, and lived another two months. I’m glad we got another Easter with him.

When Pope Francis began his papacy, I had a certain idealized notion of what the Vatican was. Twelve years later, I have quite a different one. This blog is not the place to go for easy answers. My relationship with the Catholic Church is an uneasy one, and that’s not going to change. But I do think Pope Francis tried as hard as he could to turn the tide toward mercy. I think he cared about the poor and the refugee, and that’s immensely important. I think he began inching the Church towards acceptance of LGBTQ people, and budging such a stubborn institution even a little is an achievement.

I think that, from a purely political standpoint, having a Pope who spoke out for the least in such a turbulent and dangerous time in history prevented a great many terrible situations from getting worse.

I read and admired an excellent article by my friend Mike Lewis of Where Peter Is the other day– I don’t agree with every single word, but I feel that he’s giving a beautiful expression to the frustration of so many American Catholics who have found our religion hijacked by a political movement. Francis was a refuge in all of that.

I pray that he’s at home now, and not suffering anymore.

If the Holy Father inspired you in any way, I hope you turn that inspiration into action, and do something to have mercy on others today in his honor.

Let’s all try to make it a better world.