Posted April 21, 2025 at 8:51 AM EDT
As tributes to Pope Francis pour in, many people are remarking on the timing of his death — the morning after Easter Sunday, the holiest day of the year in the Catholic faith.
“It’s so fitting that on the day after Easter, the holiest day of the year for Catholics, after blessing people in Saint Peter’s Square and delivering a message that said Christ is risen, that this is the day that he was called home to the Lord,” says Kim Daniels, director of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University and an adviser to the Vatican’s communications team.
Daniels told NPR’s Morning Edition that the community is mourning, but its spiritual leader left behind a “hopeful vision for the church going forward.”
She said he “energized our faith by orienting us again towards action … towards a church that is a field hospital,” referencing a metaphor the pope used repeatedly during his tenure. She specifically mentioned how Pope Francis challenged people to welcome migrants and refugees, reject polarization and “reject an economy that excludes the vulnerable.”
“But most of all, he just remained a source of hope and renewal amid difficult times, including just every time we are facing something that’s a challenge, whether within the church, in the clergy abuse crisis to externally with division in our political life,” Daniels added. “He remains a source of hope and renewal and enjoys broad support among American Catholics.”
A 2024 Pew Research Center survey found that 75% of American Catholics viewed Francis favorably — 15 points below his peak favorability rating, which was 90% in early 2015.
Pew said the survey revealed the largest partisan gap in views of the pontiff: Roughly 9 in 10 Catholics who belong to or lean toward the Democratic Party saw him positively, compared to just 63% of those who are Republican or Republican-leaning. But some feelings transcended party lines.
“Regardless of their partisan leanings, most U.S. Catholics regard Francis as an agent of change,” Pew added. “Overall, about seven-in-ten say the current pope represents a change in direction for the church, including 42% who say he represents a major change.”
Posted April 21, 2025 at 8:32 AM EDT
Argentina’s president sent profound condolences to the family of Pope Francis and to all Catholics in a message posted to X from the pontiff’s homeland.
Javier Milei, a far-right libertarian who stridently defends free markets, acknowledged his and the pope’s differing viewpoints.
“Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his goodness and wisdom was a true honor for me,” Milei added on X. “I bid farewell to the Holy Father and stand with all of us who are today dealing with this sad news.”
ADIÓS
Con profundo dolor me entero esta triste mañana que el Papa Francisco, Jorge Bergoglio, falleció hoy y ya se encuentra descansando en paz. A pesar de diferencias que hoy resultan menores, haber podido conocerlo en su bondad y sabiduría fue un verdadero honor para mí.… pic.twitter.com/3dPPFoNWBr
— Javier Milei (@JMilei) April 21, 2025
During the 2023 presidential race, then-candidate Milei had decried the pope, calling him an “imbecile” who defended social justice and equating him to evil and the devil.
However, once in office, Milei softened his tone, even visiting the Vatican to meet with Francis.
Francis was born in Buenos Aires in 1936 as Jorge Bergoglio. His parents were Italian immigrants and as a boy he learned Italian, but Spanish was dominant in his home. He rose to be the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, and many in Argentina lament that he never came home to visit as pope.
Mass will be held today in his honor in the capital’s cathedral where he presided. According to the newspaper Clarin, the country will observe seven days of mourning.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 8:28 AM EDT
The faithful visit St Peter’s Square following the death of Pope Francis.
Droves of mourners and tourists have begun gathering outside St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. There’s a somber silence at the square, as church bells toll — a tradition after a pope has died.
Meanwhile, flags flew at half staff across Catholic churches in Italy. The Italian soccer league Serie A postponed four games scheduled for Monday to mourn Pope Francis’ passing.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 8:07 AM EDT
On Monday, Kenyan President William Ruto posted on X that Francis “exemplified servant leadership through his humility, his unwavering commitment to inclusivity and justice, and his deep compassion for the poor and the vulnerable.”
In neighboring Ethiopia, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also turned to social media to mourn the pope, saying “may his legacy of compassion, humility, and service to humanity continue to inspire generations to come.”
In South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement that Pope Francis was “a spiritual leader who sought to unite humanity and wished to see a world governed by fundamental human values.
Pope Francis, an Argentine, was notable as the first pontiff from the Global South. Many Africans will be watching as the Vatican decides on his successor, hoping for the first African pope.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 8:01 AM EDT
Cardinals file into the Sistine Chapel for a conclave to elect a new pope in 2013 in the Vatican.
The white smoke is famous. When it streams out of a chimney at the Sistine Chapel, it signals that a new pope has been chosen and sets off celebrations among some 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.
Behind the scenes, a mysterious and intensely dramatic process culminates in that smoke — literally. It’s created by burning the ballots cardinals just used. White smoke signals that the Roman Catholic Church has a new leader; black smoke means the cardinals will need to vote again.
With the death of Pope Francis, the elaborate mechanism will now begin to decide who sits in power at the Vatican, the seat of the last absolute monarchy in Europe. It centers around the conclave, a gathering whose name stems from the Latin for “with key.”
Here’s everything to know about the process:
- When a reigning pope dies, an immediate duty falls to the camerlengo, a cardinal whose title translates to “chamberlain.” The camerlengo declares the pope is deceased and administers the Holy See until a successor is chosen. The current camerlengo is Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the first American in that post.
- Funeral rites for the late pope are held for nine days as he is mourned and celebrated. Conclaves must begin within 15 to 20 days after a pope dies or resigns.
- Upon the pope’s death, the dean of the College of Cardinals calls the cardinal electors to the Vatican. There are currently 138 of them. To join the conclave, cardinals must be under 80 years old.
- During the conclave, the cardinals live in the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a hotel-like facility next to St. Peter’s Basilica. It’s where Pope Francis opted to live, rather than in the Apostolic Palace’s papal apartments. The residence has been compared to a three-star hotel.
- The rituals take place according to rules popes have refined over the centuries, clarifying the timeframe and obligations. But the conclave itself must be obscured by “total secrecy,” as Pope John Paul II wrote. Cardinal electors must sign an oath of secrecy and seclusion, under threat of excommunication.
- The process involves multiple rounds of voting over several days. All the conclaves from the 1900s onwards have lasted less than four days. Francis was elected pope on the conclave’s second day, for instance.
- After a successful vote, the winning candidate is asked two questions: whether they accept their election, and what name they choose.
- Then official documents are signed, the pope is fitted with new attire and the decision is announced. The senior cardinal deacon will appear on the balcony over St. Peter’s Square, announcing, Habemus Papam! — “We have a pope!”
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:45 AM EDT
The White House shared a brief statement Monday morning on X on Pope Francis’ passing.
“Rest in Peace, Pope Francis,” it read.
The post featured two photos: one showing the pope with President Trump and his wife, Melania, and another with Vice President Vance, photographed over the weekend during his visit to Rome.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:38 AM EDT
Pope Francis was a master of making emotional connections through his actions, resulting in viral moments that rocketed across the internet. He was, at heart, a pastor to wounded souls.
From consoling a young boy whose father had recently died, to preaching in an eerily empty St. Peter’s Square during the pandemic, Francis understood how his actions, as much as his words, could preach the Gospel.
Highlights include:
- After addressing a joint session of Congress — the first-ever for a pope — in 2014, Francis didn’t do the usual D.C. thing: have lunch with powerful people. Instead, he headed to a homeless shelter in the nation’s capital, where he dined with 300 people served by Catholic Charities. Before lunch, the pope reminded the gathering that Jesus was homeless, too, when he came into the world. He then earned cheers by saying, “We can find no social or moral justification — no justification whatsoever — for lack of housing.”
- In 2016, Pope Francis and Orthodox Christian leaders visited a refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. But the pope did more than call attention to the issue. He brought 12 Muslim refugees from Syria — whose homes had been bombed during the Syrian war — home with him to the Vatican on the papal plane.
- As the Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis visited the city’s Catholic parishes and took questions from children. In April 2018, a young boy named Emanuele struggled to ask, so Francis invited him to whisper in his ear. The boy asked if his father, an atheist, had gone to heaven. “Does God abandon his children when they are good?” the Pope asked. “No!” the children shouted. He replied: “There, Emanuele, that is the answer.”
- Pope Francis was one of the first world leaders to publicly acknowledge the pain and anxiety of the burgeoning COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, he stood alone in St. Peter’s Square as the evening sky bled from blue to black, and offered a meditation on the crisis facing the world — acknowledging the “thick darkness” that had settled, but also reminded people that “we are all in the same boat.” Millions of people watched the address online.
Revisit more of those moments here.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:29 AM EDT
Pope Francis meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at Vatican City in July 2019.
In a telegram released by the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his “deepest condolences” over the death of Pope Frances.
The Russian leader praised the Pope’s role in actively “sponsoring dialogue” between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as with the Kremlin itself.
Yet ties between Pope Francis and Moscow strained amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In May of 2022, the Pope publicly chastised the Patriarch for his public support of the war — describing a conversation in which he warned Kirill must not serve as “Putin’s altar boy.”
“Brother, we are not state clerics, we cannot use the language of politics but that of Jesus,” said the Pope in describing the exchange to the Italian daily Corriere Della Sera.“We are pastors of the same holy people of God. Because of this, we must seek avenues of peace, to put an end to the firing of weapons.”
Putin and Pope Frances met three times in person — lastly in 2021 — but were known to speak occasionally by phone as well. Russian state media claimed Putin called Frances every March to mark his ascension to the Papacy.
But if there were lingering resentments over the Pope’s criticism of the war in Ukraine, Putin expressed none in his condolence letter.
“I’ve had occasion to talk with this great man on more than one occasion,” wrote the Kremlin leader. “And I will forever preserve the brightest memory of him.”
The Russian Orthodox Church said it would send a “high-ranking delegation” to the Vatican for the funeral services.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:16 AM EDT
Pope Francis on a visit to Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, in September 2015.
Before becoming pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio had traveled very little.
As Pope Francis, he became a global player, preferring to visit what he called the “periphery” of the world, in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
His travels included visits to Myanmar, Bangladesh, Japan, the Central African Republic, Mozambique, Uganda, Madagascar, Israel, Egypt, Iraq, Ecuador, Chile and Cuba, among other countries.
He helped restore relations between the U.S. and Cuba during the Obama administration.
And his watchwords were “encounter,” “dialogue,” “reconciliation” and “build bridges, not walls.”
Interfaith dialogue was one of the pillars of his papacy — he forged closer ties with the Orthodox Church, Protestants and Muslims, and he continued the Vatican’s good relations with Jews set forth by St. John Paul II.
Francis had no qualms about delivering overtly political messages.
Accepting a prestigious European prize in 2016, he sharply scolded the European Union for its treatment of migrants and fraying sense of unity.
“I dream of a Europe where being a migrant is not a crime. … I dream of a Europe that promotes and protects the rights of everyone,” he said.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:09 AM EDT
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen posted on social media that Pope Francis “inspired millions far beyond the Catholic Church with his humility and love for the less fortunate. My thoughts are with all who feel this profound loss.”
Today, the world mourns the passing of Pope Francis.He inspired millions, far beyond the Catholic Church, with his humility and love so pure for the less fortunate.My thoughts are with all who feel this profound loss.
May they find solace in the idea that Pope Francis’… pic.twitter.com/FiI6SASNl8
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) April 21, 2025
Incoming German Chancellor Friedrich Merz posted on X: “Pope Francis will be remembered for his tireless commitment to the weakest in society, to justice and reconciliation.”
Polish President Andrzej Duda wrote in a statement on X: “Pope Francis has returned today to the House of the Father. Throughout his pastoral ministry, he was guided by humility and simplicity … He was a great apostle of Mercy, in which he saw an answer to the challenges of the modern world.”
Posted April 21, 2025 at 7:06 AM EDT
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a photo of himself shaking hands with Pope Francis and praised the pontiff as someone who “knew how to give hope, ease suffering through prayer, and foster unity.
He prayed for peace in Ukraine and for Ukrainians. We grieve together with Catholics and all Christians who looked to Pope Francis for spiritual support. Eternal memory!”
Millions of people around the world are mourning the tragic news of Pope Francis’s passing. His life was devoted to God, to people, and to the Church.
He knew how to give hope, ease suffering through prayer, and foster unity. He prayed for peace in Ukraine and for Ukrainians. We… pic.twitter.com/Ww6NtsbWWS
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 21, 2025
Francis met with Zelenskyy three times, but Ukrainians have mixed feelings about the pope. He condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine strongly, calling it a “negation of God’s dream.”
“Have respect for human life and stop the macabre destruction of cities and villages in the east of Ukraine,” he told the crowd at St. Peter’s Square in Rome on June 5, 2022, 100 days into Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
However, he angered Ukrainians in 2024 when he told a Swiss broadcaster that Ukraine should have the “courage of the white flag” and negotiate with Russia to end the war. Ukrainians interpreted that as the pontiff asking Kyiv to capitulate to Moscow.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 6:58 AM EDT
A portrait of Pope Francis is seen at the cathedral in Jakarta on Monday.
Pope Francis was one of the most popular popes in decades and a towering figure on the world stage, addressing not just Catholics but the men and women of our time.
The outspoken pope lent his voice to almost every modern issue facing the world, often taking the side of the marginalized and vulnerable. He spoke out against commercial exploitation of the environment, rich countries’ unwillingness to accept migrants, the alienation caused by technology and the lucrative sale of weapons of war.
Francis was at times a controversial figure in his own church. Conservative critics charged him with bending church dogma as a concession to modern mores. Progressives, meanwhile, were disappointed that he did not go further to include LGBTQ Catholics and women in church leadership roles.
Same-sex couples
At a news conference weeks into the job, Francis uttered uttered a phrase that would define his papacy: “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?”
Francis was hailed by LGBTQ rights groups for calling for laws to protect same-sex couples.
Still, the Vatican sent mixed signals during his tenure. In June 2021, it filed a formal diplomatic protest with the Italian government over a draft law that would criminalize violence and hate speech against LGBTQ people and disabled people, as well as misogyny. The Vatican feared the legislation could make the church vulnerable to prosecution for not conducting same-sex marriages, for opposing adoption by same-sex couples and for refusing to teach gender theory in Catholic schools.
And while Francis repeatedly condemned discrimination and violence against gay people, he decried as “ideological colonization” the theory that gender is largely a social construct rather than determined solely by a person’s biological sex.
Progress for women
His election had sparked great hope among Catholic women — lay and nuns — that he would promote a greater role for women in the church. But in the early years of his papacy, Francis made some cringeworthy comments: When he appointed several women to a blue-ribbon theological commission, he called female theologians “strawberries on the cake”; addressing the European Parliament, lamenting Europe’s low birthrate, he compared Europe to a grandmother who is “no longer fertile and vibrant.”
At the same time, Francis promoted the advancement of women in the church far more than his predecessors did — appointing numerous women to high-level posts in Vatican departments — and he called for greater women’s participation in church decision-making.
Francis also created a commission to study the possibility that women could become deacons — meaning they could perform some of the duties of priests. But on the issue of women priests, Francis, like his predecessors, was firmly opposed — a position that infuriated many Catholic women.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 6:50 AM EDT
A worshiper waves the flag of Argentina as Pope Francis arrives at St. Peter’s square in the Vatican in 2019.
Pope Francis was the first non-European head of the Roman Catholic Church in more than a millennium.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born in 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the son of Italian immigrants. He was proud of his Argentine heritage: He had a particular fondness for maté, the caffeine-rich infused drink, and tango.
On his 78th birthday, Francis welcomed hundreds of couples as they danced the tango in St. Peter’s Square. He clearly appreciated the gift — after all, before becoming a priest, he’d worked as a nightclub bouncer in Buenos Aires.
Pope Francis was beloved for his common touch, wading into crowds, kissing babies, disabled people and disfigured individuals. He was oblivious to his aides’ security fears, refusing to ride in a bulletproof popemobile.
He set many precedents: the first Jesuit pope, the first to take the name of St. Francis of Assisi and the first from the Global South.
Posted April 21, 2025 at 6:42 AM EDT
Pope Francis met with Vice President Vance at the Vatican on Sunday, an encounter that lasted a few minutes.
The pope met briefly Sunday morning with Vice President Vance, who was in Italy over the weekend meeting with Italian officials and celebrating Easter with his family. Vance converted to Catholicism in 2019.
The Holy See Press Office said the pair exchanged Easter greetings in a private meeting that lasted for a few minutes.
In February, Pope Francis warned that the Trump administration’s effort to dramatically ramp up deportations was driving a “major crisis.” The pope also appeared to criticize Vance directly for claiming that Catholic doctrine justified such policies.
In response, Vance said he would continue to defend his views. On Sunday, Vance told the Pope: “I know you have not been feeling great, but it’s good to see you in better health.” He added: “I pray for you every day.”
Early Monday morning, after Francis’ death was announced, Vance tweeted: “My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him.”
“I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill,” Vance wrote. “But I’ll always remember him for the … homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful.”
Posted April 21, 2025 at 6:39 AM EDT
Pope Francis made a rare public appearance on Easter Sunday, less than a month after he was discharged from Rome’s Gemelli hospital following a lengthy illness, which included a severe respiratory infection and bilateral pneumonia. He had entered the hospital five weeks earlier, on Feb. 14, with a case of bronchitis.
Doctors who sent the pope home in late March said he would require two months of convalescence, including rest and additional medical treatment.
On Sunday, Francis did not preside over the Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square, instead delegating it to Italian Cardinal Angelo Comastri.
But he did appear on the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican for the reading of a blessing he’d written. He also toured through St. Peter’s Square in his modified Mercedes-Benz G-Class known as the popemobile, greeting the crowds of worshippers who had gathered for Easter mass.
“The resurrection of Jesus is indeed the basis of our hope,” Francis wrote in his Urbi et Orbi message, which translates as “to the city and to the world,” the text of which was read aloud by Archbishop Diego Ravelli.
Francis, in his Urbi et Orbi message, also renewed his call for peace in places across the world experiencing violent conflicts and humanitarian crises, including Israel and Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Ukraine.
The pope added: “On this day, I would like all of us to hope anew and to revive our trust in others, including those who are different than ourselves, or who come from distant lands, bringing unfamiliar customs, ways of life and ideas!”
Posted April 21, 2025 at 6:33 AM EDT
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday at age 88 at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta, according to the Vatican.
Pope Francis was the first non-European pope in more than a millennium, and one of the most popular pontiffs in decades.
The son of Italian immigrants, Jorge Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires and was proud of his Argentine heritage.
Pope Francis blesses the faithful as he is driven through a crowd during his visit to the southern Italian island of Lampedusa on July 8, 2013. Francis traveled to the tiny island to pray for migrants lost at sea.
Bergoglio set many precedents: the first Jesuit pope, the first pope to take the name of St. Francis of Assisi, and the first pope from the global south.
On his election in 2013 — after the surprise resignation of Benedict XVI — he broke with tradition, opting to live in a Vatican hotel rather than the opulent papal quarters.
Francis cleaned up Vatican finances, long tainted by corruption.
He created a kitchen cabinet of nine cardinals to help reform a dysfunctional bureaucracy.
Francis’ staunch environmentalism and critique of laissez-faire capitalism met with vehement opposition from conservatives within and outside the catholic church.
A master at blending the spiritual and the political, Francis emerged as a daring, independent broker on the global stage.
