The Pontiff, who died at 88 years old, leaves behind a legacy of attempted reform that was not without controversy.
Pope Francis, the first leader of the Roman Catholic Church to come from Latin America, has died.
Pope Francis I—previously known as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Archbishop of Buenos Aires in Argentina—passed away on April 21 at 7:35 a.m. He was 88 years old.
Hours before he died, the pope emerged on Easter Sunday to bless the thousands of people in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican, an independent enclave in the center of Rome.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, said, “At 7.35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the home of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of his Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with faithfulness, courage, and universal love, especially for the poorest and most marginalized.”
Farrell’s duties include announcing the pope’s death, overseeing funeral and burial preparations, and organizing the conclave to elect the new Pope.
“With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite, merciful love of God, one and tribune,″ he added.
The pope, who had part of one of his lungs removed as a young man, experienced a respiratory crisis in February that developed into double pneumonia.
He spent 38 days in the hospital before being released, but he remained frail.
He leaves behind a global church 1.3 billion strong, and a legacy that strove to inspire social and political reforms in and out of that church rooted in his interpretation of Jesus Christ’s teachings on mercy.
However, those reforms—particularly those concerning tolerance and care for the environment, illegal immigrants, and the LGBT community—were no stranger to controversy and conservative backlash.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told RAI’s TG1 program that the whole world will remember Francis for being the pope of the people.
“I will miss him too, we had an extraordinary personal relationship, he was a pontiff with whom you could talk about everything, he was very special,” Meloni said. ”This news saddens us deeply, because a great man and a great shepherd has left us.”
By T.J. Muscaro
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