Pope Francis was a man of deep humility and simplicity. His dialogues with leaders and representatives of other religions were also rooted in his humble conviction that people of different faiths are all co-pilgrims, brothers and sisters in search of truth and committed to enhance humanity’s divine destiny.
People of goodwill everywhere, believers or not, mourn the loss of Pope Francis. This is quite unusual for a religious or political leader in our world. While being the supreme high priest of about 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, and the monarch of the sovereign State of the Vatican of some 109 acres, Papa Francisco pulled down all parochial borders with compassionate grace to take up the cause of suffering children, women, and men everywhere. A man of deep humility and simplicity, Pope Francis’s words, acts and body language reflected the tenderness and compassion of Jesus, his divine role model.
Ever since his election as Pope in 2013 Francis subverted, in the prophetic spirit of Christ, some of the sacred Roman canons and protocols in favour of the miserable and the marginalised. Reluctant to wear the conventional papal regalia, he preferred his ordinary white cassock with a simple pectoral cross instead of a bejewelled gold cross. While red shoes and socks are customary for the new Pope, Francis appeared on the balcony of Saint Peter’s basilica wearing his black shoes that had long trod the streets and alleys of the poor in Argentina. Refusing to live in the classical papal apartments of the Vatican palace, he chose to live in Saint Marta’s guest house like a pilgrim or a passing inn-dweller who has no permanent roof over his head. He was simply echoing the Biblical exhortation that we are aliens and pilgrims in this world having no permanent city or home of our own.
This symbolism of transparent simplicity and self-denial from head to foot in the person of Pope Francis was translated into his pastoral engagement involving real human beings. He constantly challenged political leaders and raised with deep concern the cause of immigrants and refugees, the deep suffering of millions in war-torn regions, the rampant violence and injustice to women, children and the disabled, the taken-for-granted gender discrimination, the exclusivist economic policies of advanced nations, the weapon trade and warmongering of political power brokers and so on. A towering moral-spiritual conscience in our chaotic world, he was looked upon by millions as a source of hope for a new world order of justice, forgiveness, compassion and sharing of resources.
Pope Francis never invoked the Roman papal doctrine of infallibility. Instead, he admitted in public that he, like anybody else, was a weak human being and needed the prayer-support of all people. Soon after his election, as he emerged on the basilica’s balcony to greet the huge crowd assembled in Saint Peter’s square, he bowed his head and said in his gentle voice that he was seeking their blessings first before he, blessed them.
Pope Francis as the leader of western Christianity maintained a very cordial relationship with all the Orthodox churches of the east. In his first speech as Pope, he said that he was the Bishop of Rome. Many people didn’t understand its implications. He was indeed the Bishop of Rome, so why repeat it? In fact, there were acrimonious disputes of more than a millennium between the western Catholic church and the Orthodox churches of the east about the tall claims of some of the medieval popes and the pompous designations they unilaterally assumed — for example, Vicar of Christ, Universal Shepherd of all churches, and Supreme High Priest (Pontifex Maximus). These titles gathered an aggressive accent when traditional Roman Catholic countries like Portugal and Spain , France and Belgium began their colonial-missionary conquest of the world. The churches of the east had accepted the title Bishop of Rome as authentically part of the ancient tradition. They maintained that Christ alone was the Good Shepherd for all, and that heads of regional churches were all personally fallible in their policies and decisions and constantly in need of the corrective force of synodal councils and the community of the faithful. Pope Francis was sincerely sensitive to this.
His dialogues with leaders and representatives of other religions were also rooted in his humble conviction that people of different faiths are all co-pilgrims, brothers and sisters in search of truth and committed to enhance humanity’s divine destiny.
This writer, as a member of the official Joint Working Group between the Vatican and the World Council of Churches in Geneva, had the privilege of meeting Pope Francis thrice. As part of the delegation led by Catholicos Marthoma Paulose II, head of the Malankara Orthodox Church in 2013 we were invited for lunch with the Pope. During the friendly conversation at the small round table the Pope spoke about the love of Francis of Assisi even for wild animals. Seizing the occasion I said, “There are Hindu shrines in India where they feed snakes and rats.”
“Do they feed poisonous snakes also?” asked the Pope with child-like curiosity.” “Yes, Holy Father, they do,” I replied.
Suddenly with shining eyes wide open, he turned into a 10-year-old boy who eagerly listens to amazing jungle stories and wanted to hear more. No wonder he wrote the remarkable book Laudato Si on the environmental crisis and the human response.
The world has lost a genuine human being who laid down with ease and joy the worldly power and glory that surrounded him and entered the hearts of people of all colours and faiths for the sake of love.
Father KM George is incumbent chairperson of Dr Paulos Gregorios Chair at Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam and formerly principal, Orthodox Theological Seminary, and programme moderator, World Council of Churches, Geneva. The views expressed are personal.
This post was first published in Hindustan Times on 22nd April, 2025.
