Divine Mercy Upon Pope Francis

Numerous people have expressed their sorrow to me over the recent death of Pope Francis. But I must admit that I do not share their sorrow. It’s not that I had enough of Pope Francis and am happy to see him vacate the See of Peter. Quite the opposite. I think he did many good things for the Church and humanity. But after all the physical challenges he had in recent years, frankly, I’m happy the Lord has relieved him of his suffering. As a Catholic who believes in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting, I pray and trust that the God of Love is shining the rays of His mercy upon his servant on this Divine Mercy Sunday.   

Let’s put his death into perspective with some others who have held this central role in the Church. Our founder, Jesus Christ, died at about age 33. His first successor, St. Peter, died at 62-67 years. Fast-forwarding to the 20^th century, Pope John XXIII died at 81. Pope Paul VI died at 80, and Pope John Paul the Great died at 84. The only pope who lived longer than Francis was Pope Benedict who lived to the age of 95, probably because he resigned early! Pope Francis made it to 88! I think that’s long enough for a pope to carry the Church upon his shoulders. But regardless of what I think, it appears to have been the will of God. 

Therefore, I am not grieving but rejoicing. I imagine Pope Francis was looking forward to this new adventure. He was the first to admit that he is a sinner (in his first interview as pope). Nevertheless, he probably took some comfort in the words of St. Paul during his final weeks: “The time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me, but to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4: 6-8). Although some may question whether Pope Francis really “kept the faith,” I suggest we leave that up to “the Lord, the righteous judge.” 

For Jesus is the one who said, “Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food… Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of my brothers, you did it to me” (Matthew 25: 34-40). No one can deny that Pope Francis was committed to serving Jesus in the poor.   Could it all be as simple as St. John of the Cross concluded: “In the twilight of my life, I will be judged on love alone.” 

When Jorge Bergoglio was 17, he had a special experience of the loving presence of God. Following Confession, he felt his heart touched by the Mercy of God, who with a gaze of tender love, called him to religious life. Some years later, he read a homily by Venerable Bede on the Feast of St. Matthew and was drawn to the sentence, “Jesus therefore sees the tax collector, and since he sees by having mercy and by choosing, he says to him, ‘follow me..’” Jorge so identified with this experience that he chose the three central words of this sentence to be his motto on his coat of arms as Bishop and as Pope. Those Latin words, miserando atque eligendo roughly translate: “Looking on him with mercy, he chose him.”

The man who embraced his religious vocation inspired by God’s mercy has ended his earthly life during the Octave of Divine Mercy (Good Friday to the Second Sunday of Easter). So let us entrust the soul of our beloved Pope to Divine Mercy, rejoicing that he has fought the good fight and finished the race. And let us entrust the leadership of the Church to the providential plan of Divine Mercy. 
On Easter Sunday Pope Francis shared his last words with the Church and the world. I conclude with a few quotes from this Urbi et Orbi address and encourage you to read it in its entirety. (https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/263499/full-text-of-pope-francis-urbi-et-orbi-blessing-for-easter-2025). 

“Dear Sisters and brothers… In the passion and death of Jesus, God has taken upon himself all the evil in this world and in his infinite mercy has defeated it… The resurrection of Jesus is indeed the basis of our hope… Thanks to Christ — crucified and risen from the dead — hope does not disappoint! (cf. Rom 5:5)… All those who put their hope in God place their feeble hands in his strong and mighty hand; they let themselves be raised up and set out on a journey. Together with the risen Jesus, they become pilgrims of hope, witnesses of the victory of love and of the disarmed power of Life… 

“The Lord now lives forever. 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)! 
Happy Easter to everyone!”