This tribute is based on my personal encounters with Pope Francis, supported by insights into his theological inspirations.
In the embassy in Rome and among close friends, I affectionally referred to Pope Francis as Papiko—a diminutive form of the Georgian Papi, meaning Pope. There was something disarmingly human about him: his genuine intimacy was captivating, and his extraordinary gift for sensing people’s inner feelings was unmistakable. By the second minute of our first meeting, as I handed him the Letter of Credence, he “knew” I was overflowing with joy of being there and conversing with him. That joy endured throughout all the years of my service.
Pope Francis’ pursuit for aggiornamento—the Church’s renewal—is simply fascinating. Bringing fresh air into the Church, opening the church doors wider, renewing the Gospel call for taking care of the poor and vulnerable of this world have had a profound impact. Remarkably, his instant popularity as the leader of the Catholic world with a deep concern for the peripheral, the underprivileged, the destitute attracted even the powerful of this world. We would like to believe that they were unconsciously drawn by the unique authority of the leader who cared first and foremost for the poor and forgotten. Perhaps, some genuinely were.
Another central theme in Pope Francis’ encyclicals, becoming a truly universal quest, has been synodality. The path to the Synod of Bishops on Synodality (2021-2024) began on the first day of his pontificate with his first encyclical, The Joy of the Gospel (Evangelii Gaudium 2013) on the proclamation of the Gospel in today’s world, envisioning the realization of Church’s mission realized through inclusivity and openness at every level of its life.
The second encyclical Praise be to you (Laudato si’ 2015) clarifies the indissoluble bond between economic hardship, migration, and climate change—issues demanding the strengthening of the spiritual life. Ultimately, Christians are judged by whether they fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked, took care of the sick, visited the prisoners (Matthew 25:35-36)—and these acts nourished Pope Francis’ spirituality. He was a true Pastor in the most profound meaning of this word balanced by the Jesuit spirituality: courageous and competent service to the mission of the Church.
His encyclical preceding the Synod on Synodality was on fraternity and social solidarity (Fratelli tutti 2020), addressing a way of life proposed by the Gospel—fraternal love and openness for all, regardless of one’s origin or any other characteristics. Again, Pope Francis invoked the language of ‘renewal’, with his remarkable pastoral gift inspiring the vision that love drives all towards ‘universal communion’ (par. 95). In my reading of this process aimed at renewal, the Pontiff is proposing an authentic way of being Church that is rooted in the tradition and calls for holiness of all the baptised, all People of God. The rich Catholic theological heritage in the fields of mission and social teaching, along with the renewed appreciation of the divine creation and creatures, provided a fertile ground for the Synodal process.
The final Synodal document, For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission, )XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, 2024), encourages dialogue between Christians from different traditions by emphasising that there can be no synodality without an ecumenical dimension (par. 147-148). Notably, the synodal document calls for a model of unity based on an ecclesiology of communion (par. 137). One of the most promising avenues of the recent synodal process driven by Pope Francis would be the continuous openness to the diverse expressions of being Church, listening and learning from multi-cultural and multi-religious realities. Good will is an absolute must in church leadership, and Pope Francis possessed it in abundance.
The fruits of the twelve years’ regeneration of the legacy of the Second Vatican Council will be remarkable and more visible if the steering wheel does not fail that trajectory. The College of Cardinals has never been as geographically diverse as it is today. Hierarchs who will elect a new pope come from different parts of the world, representing distinct contexts and various inculturations of the Gospel, making speculations on which ecclesial ‘trend’ may succeed highly uncertain.
We must remember Pope John XXIII: who could have imagined that his call for a council would forever change the Christian landscape? Let us trust that Pope Francis’ quest for the synodal theological solution in the life of Christian Churches will bear fruits in the future under the wise and charismatic future leadership.
Pope Francis leaves behind a rich legacy to study, explore, and discover unrevealed nuances. In ‘our part’ of the world, those who will miss his spiritual leadership, unfortunately, will also remember his hesitation to clearly name an aggressor—a common trend among the political elites. On December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, Pope Francis wept while prayed for Ukraine. Yet some of his statements since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion into Ukraine were ambiguous, especially as to who was to be blamed for the loss of innocent lives, how to achieve the peace, or truce. At the same time, the Holy See’s role in exchange of prisoners of war, the return of kidnapped children, and many other cases of charity remain unforgettable.
In the book of condolences in the Embassy of the Holy See in Tbilisi I wrote: “Pope Francis’ departure from this world during Bright Week, in the Octave of Easter is a true sign of his sanctity.”
May he rest in peace.