Reflection on Pope Francis

My heart is in mourning. A shepherd I deeply loved has gone home to God — a witness to the Gospel who showed us not with words alone, but with actions, that the heart of Christianity is not power, but mercy.

Pope Francis was a pope for the poor, the oppressed, the forgotten. He became the face of a Church that was not afraid to walk into the margins of the world and embrace human frailties with compassion and tenderness.

As a priest, I found him a source of encouragement and hope. He reminded us that one can be faithful to the Gospel without hardening the heart — that love, justice, and humility are not signs of weakness, but of true discipleship.

Today, through tears, I give thanks for his life. And I renew my commitment to the Church he dreamed of and fought for: a Church that listens, that heals, that walks with people where they are.

Thank you, Francis. You left our hearts full of Gospel.

Father D’Angelo