22/04/2025

TUESDAY | APR 22, 2025

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Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88

VATICAN CITY : Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, has died, the Vatican said yesterday, ending an often turbulent reign marked by division and tension as he sought to overhaul the hidebound institution. He was 88, and had survived a serious bout of double pneumonia. “Dear brothers and sisters, it is with profound sadness I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis,” Cardinal Kevin Farrell announced on the Vatican’s TV channel. “At 7.35 this morning the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father.” Francis’ death comes a day after the pope had made his first prolonged public appearance since being discharged on March 23 from a 38-day hospital stay for pneumonia. On Easter Sunday, Francis had entered St Peter’s Square in a popemobile shortly after mid-day, greeting cheering crowds. He had also offered a special blessing for the first time since Christmas. Leaders across the world were reacting to the pope’s death with praise for his efforts to reform the church and offering condolences to the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. “He inspired millions, far beyond the Catholic Church, with his humility and love so pure for the less fortunate,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. o Leaves legacy of humanity, justice, human fraternity opening up Vatican archives to lay courts to making it compulsory to report suspicions of abuse and any attempts to cover it up to authorities. However, anything said in the confessional box remains sacrosanct – and activists say he did not do enough. One campaigner, Anne Barrett Doyle, told AFP last year that the reforms had been “superficial”. “Structurally, they retain all the elements of cover-up: lack of transparency, lack of external oversight, lack of mandatory severe sanctions,” she said. Diplomacy Francis travelled widely, making 47 trips overseas that gave priority to what he called the “peripheries”, countries with small or marginalised Catholic commu nities. He regularly called for peace in hotspots such as Sudan, Gaza and Ukraine, and promoted dialogue with other faiths, particularly Islam. The Vatican operates behind the scenes in many countries, with diplomatic successes including mediating the rapprochement between the United States and Cuba in 2014. In 2018, the Vatican agreed a

Pope Francis greets cardinals as he unexpectedly appears during Palm Sunday Mass in Saint Peter’s Square. – REUTERSPIC

reshape the 2,000-year-old church. While he struggled with internal dissent, Francis became a global superstar, drawing huge crowds on his many foreign travels as he tirelessly promoted interfaith dialogue and peace, taking the side of the marginalised, such as migrants. Francis appointed nearly 80% of the cardinal electors who will choose the next pope, increasing the possibility that his successor will continue his progressive policies, despite the strong pushback from traditionalists. – Reuters

apartments in the Apostolic Palace used by his predecessors, saying he preferred to live in a community setting for his “psychological health”. He inherited a church under attack over a child sex abuse scandal and torn by infighting in the Vatican bureaucracy, and was elected with a clear mandate to restore order. But as his papacy progressed, he faced fierce criticism from conservatives, who accused him of trashing cherished traditions. He also drew the ire of progressives, who felt he should have done much more to

historic but also controversial deal with Beijing over the appointment of bishops in China. But the pope’s calls for peace in Ukraine failed to have any visible impact. Francis sparked outrage from Kyiv last year after praising those in the country who had the “courage to raise the white flag and negotiate”. His calls for an end to fighting in the Middle East fell flat and he drew criticism from Israel after condemning Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected pope on March 13, 2013, surprising many church watchers who had seen the Argentine cleric, known for his concern for the poor, as an outsider. He sought to project simplicity into the grand role and never took possession of the ornate papal He sought to forge a more open Church, particularly towards divorced, married and other members. The approach angered traditionalists, in particular his decision to authorise blessings of same-sex couples in some cases. The Vatican was forced to clarify its position after an outcry in Africa and the United States. The son of Italian immigrants to Argentina, Francis strongly defended the rights of migrants, including criticising US President Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportations. Francis was also a vocal campaigner for the environment. In his groundbreaking 2015 encyclical, he urged the world to act quickly to Jose Ramos-Horta, the president of East Timor, where Francis had visited in September last year as part of the longest foreign trip of his papacy, said the pope “leaves behind a profound legacy of humanity, of justice, of human fraternity”. strikes on Gaza as “cruelty”. Compassion, social justice

A man lowering the Vatican flag in Jerusalem yesterday. – AFPPIC A voice for compassion and peace

VATICAN CITY: During his 12 years as head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis was a voice for compassion and peace, reformed the Vatican government and took action against clerical child abuse. Here are some of his main achievements. Battle against sex abuse Dealing with the scourge of sexual abuse by clergy and its cover-up was one of the biggest challenges for Pope Francis when he took office in 2013. A 2018 trip to Chile proved a turning point. Francis initially defended a Chilean bishop against allegations he covered up the crimes of an elderly priest, demanding that the accusers show proof of his guilt. He later admitted making “grave mistakes” in the case – a first for a pope. He summoned all of Chile’s bishops to the Vatican, after which they all submitted their resignations. Later that year, he stripped the cardinal title from abusive US cleric Theodore McCarrick, and in 2019 removed his status as a priest. Also in 2019, he held an unprecedented summit that heard from victims, where he promised an “all-out battle” against clerical abuse. Concrete changes followed, from

A woman reacts at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. – REUTERSPIC

tackle environmental issues. Reform

clamping down on corruption and stepping up scrutiny of investments and the Vatican Bank, which led to the closure of 5,000 accounts. He also revolutionised the Synod, a Catholic discussion body, by involving lay members including women. Since 2021 it has looked at the future of the Church, but key decisions, such as allowing women to become deacons, were not due until later this year. In his institutional reforms, again, Francis faced strong opposition, with some critics accusing him of “tyrannical” behaviour. – AFP

From decentralising power and increas ing transparency to providing greater roles for lay people and women, Francis implemented fundamental reforms of the Roman Curia, the central govern ment of the Holy See. The reforms were consolidated in a 2022 constitution that reorganised the Vatican’s dicasteries, or ministries. Francis took aim at the murky finances of the Vatican, creating a secretariat for the economy in 2014,