One of the blessings of being a bishop is the opportunity to meet the Pope. Over my twenty-one years as a bishop I have met three popes (John Paul II, Benedict and Francis), each on several occasions. I have met Pope Francis on a number of occasions, the most recent being in February this year, just shortly before he was confined to hospital.

 

My personal relationship with Pope Francis is significant in that it was he who appointed me as Archbishop of Hobart in July 2013, in the first year of his pontificate. I have served as Archbishop of Hobart during the years of his pontificate.

When someone significant to us dies it is natural to recall the relationship we have had with that person. We reflect on aspects of their character that have touched us.

As I reflect on Pope Francis I am conscious of what he brought to the exercise of the papacy. I am conscious of his impact as leader of the Catholic Church. He has had an influence not only on the life and mission of the Church, but he has also been a presence on the world stage for the twelve years of his pontificate.

Many impressions of his personality and spirituality immediately come to mind. Above all else my impression of him was of a man with a deep compassion for those disadvantaged and struggling. He often spoke of going ‘to the peripheries’, and he led by example. Even last Holy Thursday, despite his weakened condition, he washed the feet of prisoners at a jail in Rome.

While he did visit major cities and places of influence, his interest was in nations and people not at the centre of world events. His last major trip was to visit East Timor and Papua New Guinea. He visited Mongolia and Iraq. Over the years he has appointed Cardinals from places like Myanmar, Mongolia, Iraq, Indonesia, East Timor, Tonga and Lithuania.

Pope Francis had a special concern for the wellbeing of migrants and refugees, challenging governments to do more to care for them.

His first trip as pope was to the Italian island of Lampedusa where there were thousands of African migrants.

He looked for ways to reach out to those that society was leaving behind. In Rome he established shelters for the homeless, even arranging the provision of barbers.

He himself wanted to preserve a humble way of life. He did not move into the Papal Apartments but chose to live in Santa Marta along with other clergy serving in Rome. He preferred simple transport. He sought to live Gospel simplicity. I admired this quality.

Indeed, his attitudes to people and to the way he lived was inspired by the example of Christ himself, who was comfortable among the poor and who was accused of eating with tax collectors and sinners. In this Pope Francis was a great witness to the Christian world.

In all these and so many other ways Pope Francis had endeared himself to people, both inside and outside the Church. He loved meeting ordinary people. The final day of his life was spent among those who gathered for the Easter Sunday Mass in St Peter’s Square, despite the pleas of his doctors to take more rest. He wanted to serve until the very end. This he did.

Pope Francis was aware of those who felt outside the flow of society and the Church.

He was conscious of those struggling with issues of sexuality and sexual attraction, and those Catholics who had remarried in a civil ceremony. While he did not change Church teaching, he did want to show his genuine appreciation for their struggles. He urged Catholics to accompany people who found themselves on the margins of the Church. In this he witnessed to pastoral solicitude for those whose lives were not in full conformity with the Church and its teaching.

Pope Francis continued the practice of recent popes in reaching out ecumenically to other Christian faiths, especially Orthodox Christians. He enjoyed an affectionate bond with the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. He also made important overtures to the Islamic world. He visited a number of key Islamic leaders. He sought to forge links in the effort to promote greater international fraternity.

He has shown a deep concern for the environment and his letter, Laudato si’, has been very influential in encouraging greater concern for ‘our common home’.

Pope Francis is held in affection by a great number of people who have seen in him a true reflection of Gospel living. He has been an inspiration to many and his death is mourned by millions.