Pope Francis.
Each of the 266 popes who have served the Church since St. Peter has his unique story. Eighty-three (83) of them are canonized and in the official list of saints. A few did not have a good reputation. Many have made a beneficial impact on the Church and the world.
The legacy of Pope Francis is assured in the annals of Church history. He is a pontiff of many firsts.
For starters, he ascended to the seat of St. Peter not because a Roman Pontiff had died but after the voluntary resignation of Pope Benedict XVI in 2013. That was the first such abdication since Pope Celestine resigned freely in the 13th Century CE.
After Benedict’s unusual action, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires was elected Pope Francis. Having served as head of the Catholic Church for 12 years, what are some of the aspects of his legacy?
He occupies a unique position in the history of the Church as the first Jesuit to ascend to the papacy. His order has played a sterling role in the service of the Church since the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Revival that began in the 16th century. Besides the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, Jesuits take a unique fourth promise to obey the Roman Pontiff regarding the mission he wishes them to carry out in any part of the world. Before Pope Francis, no Jesuit has ever become the Roman Pontiff.
A man with an unusual background who in his youth served as a bouncer in a night club and later trained as a chemist, Mario Bergoglio was resilient. Part of his lung was removed while in his 20s due to respiratory ailment and he underwent intestinal surgery several years ago. In a 2013 interview, he mentioned that he had suffered from sciatica for years. But he never dwelt on these ailments as he went about his mission.
Pope Francis was quite unorthodox in several aspects of his life style. Conventionally, Roman Pontiffs live in the Apostolic palace. But soon after election in 2013, Francis chose to reside at Casa Santa Marta, adjacent to St Peter’s Basilica. Little wonder that the pope opted to be buried not in St. Peter’s Basilica alongside other pontiffs including St. Peter, but in St. Mary Major. This is the papal Basilica so dear to him and he chose it as his final earthly resting place for personal reasons. Pope Francis continues to be unorthodox even in death. He has a signature, uniquely his own and inimitable
Besides living simply, Pope Francis usually opted to travel in a simple car, not in the prestigious limousine available for use by the Holy Father. The German automaker Mercedes Benz usually gifts a newly-elected Pontiff a limousine. Recently, Pope Francis received an electric G-Class popemobile, customised for his needs. Many Kenyans remember the pontiff riding in an ordinary midsized car during his visit to Kenya in 2015.
During his tenure as pontiff, Pope Francis wrote several documents including Lumen Fidei (Light of Faith 2013), Evangelium Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel 2013), Laudato Si (On the Care of the Environment 2015), Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love 2016) and Misericordia et Misera (Mercy and Peace 2016).
During his visit to Kenya nearly 10 years ago, Pope Francis left a lasting impression on Kenyans. His first official act was to visit the UNEP Headquarters in Gigiri, Nairobi. In the presence of a large gathering, he spoke about the environment, climate change and desertification. And in the presence of Achim Steiner, then UNEP Executive Director and Sahle-Werke Zewde, former Director General of the United Nations Office in Nairobi (UNON), the pontiff planted a black ironwood (Olea capensis) sapling. This is an indigenous tree species that thrives in Africa from the Cape to Cairo, and across the bulge of the continent in the west to the horn of Africa in the east. Planting the single sapling was a simple act, replete with meaning. This comprised a symbolic act of faith and hope. But it was also a challenge to Kenyans to conserve the environment.
During his address to the nation at Mass on the grounds of the University of Nairobi in 2015, Pope Francis invited Kenyans to shun negative ethnicity and celebrate diversity. His message remains relevant for us today.
May the soul of Francis our departed Pope rest in the dew of the heavens.
Fr Njoroge is the Chaplain of the Catholic Community (CATC)
