Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina in 1936, passed away this morning at 07:35 local time (06:35 in Lisbon) at the papal residence Casa Santa Marta in Vatican City. His death marks the end of a pontificate lasting just over 12 years, during which he emerged as a champion of the marginalized.
“Even as an atheist, he made me want to pray. He defended the poor, immigrants, and minorities. Just yesterday, he called for a ceasefire in Gaza. He demanded pathways to peace, the submission of the economy to human dignity, and the respect for all lives. If I were to pray, it would be for the Church to have the wisdom to continue his courageous legacy,” expressed playwright Tiago Rodrigues.
Writer Valter Hugo Mãe shared the hope that “the Church, which holds a significant role in our societies for both believers and non-believers, should continue the path of Francis. It would be essential not to take a step back.”
Journalist and author Anabela Mota Ribeiro remembered the Pope for “speaking about the dead in the Mediterranean like no one else, calling for ceasefire in Gaza, and redefining single mothers simply as mothers.”
Similar to Tiago Rodrigues, she emphasized her atheism but regarded Francis “as a rare political leader, so necessary in an increasingly grim world.”
Author Patrícia Reis highlighted his call for an “end to all wars, whether military or commercial,” and the abolition of political prisoners.
“His tenure was a time of reinvention,” she stated, recalling how the Pope “looked at women beyond their maternal roles.”
“Francis recognized women in all their capacities. He empowered them within the Church and acknowledged them outside of it. He approached the LGBTQI+ community without fear and with search for direction. The Church changes slowly and gradually. Francis accelerated some issues and brought others up for discussion. He authored the first encyclical on climate change. He was a Pope who reached many, unsettling the most conservative. Many non-believers saw in him a possibility, a light,” wrote the author.
Patrícia Reis also praised the Pope for presenting himself as “a common man,” who listened to others and cared for them, something imperative in the violent world we live in today.
“The image of the Pope alone in St. Peter’s Basilica during the pandemic, I will never forget. He was a man praying for all. We ask today who will come next. The powers rising in the world, the most fearsome ideas, overshadow the next conclave.”
Comedian Nuno Markl remarked that in an era where “too many people misuse Christ’s name to justify their hatred and intolerance, this man explained the essence of Christ’s teachings.”
“I am not Catholic, but I will always admire those who can promote teachings that, in their purest form, could make the world more empathetic, supportive, and breathable,” he wrote, hoping that “whoever comes next maintains and, perhaps, expands that light.”
Singer-songwriter Márcia joined the tributes on social media, revealing her “deep emotion over the passing of Pope Francis.”
“Practicing and non-practicing alike, Francis united us in our differences, bringing us together in the right place within Humanity. He humanized the world. Solidarity with everyone and everything, he showed us that is the only path,” she expressed.
Nascente Publishing, part of the Penguin Random House Portugal group, which published Pope Francis’s autobiography, also paid tribute via social media with a post from its editor, Jorge Silva, noting Francis as the first Latin American Pope.
“Charismatic, amiable, humorous, he embraced the LGBT community, reminded us of the scandal of all wars, fought against the dehumanization of a consumerist society, reached out to everyone, and even told jokes about himself, selecting humor and smile as ‘the leaven of existence,'” he described, lauding him as a “major figure of the first quarter of the 21st century.”
Porto Editora commented that “the death of Pope Francis leaves a deep void, but also a legacy of words, gestures, and bridges built between peoples and beliefs.” Cultura Editora highlighted his “humility, compassion, and courage,” a legacy of “social justice and dialogue between cultures and religions.”
The National Arts Plan elected to honor him on their Instagram page with a quote from Pope Francis himself: “Art and faith cannot leave things as they are: they change, transform, convert, and move them. Art can never be an anesthetic; it gives peace but does not put consciences to sleep, keeping them awake.”
Internationally, many artists also voiced their farewells on social media, including American singer and author Patti Smith, who performed at the Vatican at Francis’s invitation, dedicating a brief poem to him: “This is a small flower, a dandelion, humble but strong. I saw it this morning and was moved. Farewell, dear Pope Francis. Nature, poetry, and those suffering will miss their champion,” she wrote.
Argentinian writer Mariana Enriquez reminisced about the times she occasionally saw Jorge Bergoglio when he was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires on the subway, a period when she “didn’t like him,” noting how “he became a great leader and a good shepherd for his faithful.”
Clarifying that she isn’t religious, the Argentine author expressed being “very saddened by his death and proud that someone like Francis was the first Latin American Pope,” recalling that “his first mass outside Rome was in Lampedusa, and he spoke about migrants, a situation that remains unchanged and scarcely talked about in the public discourse.”
Mariana Enriquez admitted that Francis taught her to step down a few notches in her anticlericalism and be more tolerant, adding, “We agnostics are very arrogant and sometimes think we’re above human flaws.”
The writer shared her favorite image of the Pope alone in the Vatican basilica during the pandemic, closing her post with “a big hug” to Catholic friends and all those who, like her, felt “that the Pope was the most compassionate and insightful powerful man of this Western world.”
Pope Francis’s 12-year pontificate, as the first Jesuit to lead the Catholic Church, was marked by efforts to combat sexual abuse, wars, and a pandemic.
Francis had been hospitalized for 38 days due to bilateral pneumonia and was discharged on March 23. His last public appearance was on Easter Sunday, the day before he passed away.
