Fraternity, Compassion, and Justice: Pope Francis, the People’s Pope

Eulogy

By Jan Arden

Pope Francis passed away at 88 on Monday after a couple of months of ailing health, on the day following his last Easter appearance, an event that has deeply saddened the Catholic world, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to them as the traditional nine-day mourning are under way. Yet, in the corridors of conservatism that has generally been the hallmark of the Vatican, this was no ordinary Pope. His words, travels, moral, religious and spiritual presence kept challenging us, of all faiths and political dispositions, to the quest for greater fraternity, compassion, mercy and social justice in a world torn asunder by power conflicts, unbridled capitalism and global competition for limited resources.

Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Getty Images

As a Jesuit, the Argentinian-origin Pope was steeped in simplicity, if not a spiritual humility that made him, days after taking his eminent office, prefer a modest Vatican suite meant for cardinals rather than the more opulent papal residence, riding by special bus rather than a papal motorcade of limos, paying his own hotel bills or his future burial costs and even in his simpler wardrobe, unsettling an establishment more accustomed to familiar perks, pomp and pageantry. The faithful called him the People’s Pope in a papacy that lasted 12 years.

While these and his other attempts to reform the Vatican establishment may have caused flutters among Vatican watchers and the College of Cardinals familiar with the hushed networks within the Vatican, they rejoiced many within the wider circle of the faithful in St. Peter’s ministry on Earth. Insiders know he did not have an easy time with several difficult issues that fell to him, where his straightforward views, expressed in simple words, became indispensable. Secularists and those of Catholic faith and dogma alike knew he had to address the shocking revelations and cover-ups surrounding sexual predators in ordained robes preying on the innocence and trust of children, the vexed question of celibacy and the role of women in the Church, and the rights of members of the LGBTQ+ community to be treated as human beings, not as deviants.

With compassion and a sense of universal values inherited from his mentor, St Francis of Assisi, he did not shirk from taking a clear stance on those controversies. Several centuries earlier, Saint Francis had expressed the essence of fraternity as one that allows us to acknowledge, appreciate and love each person, regardless of physical proximity, regardless of where he or she was born or lived, and, we would add today, regardless of race, gender or religious beliefs.

*  *  *

Globalisation of indifference

The outpouring of condolence messages from world leaders testifies to the fact that Pope Francis’s words and tireless pilgrimages around the world, particularly to many difficult zones, had a far wider reach than mere preaching to his followers. He challenged them, and us, to seek deeper universal fraternity based on compassion, mercy, and social justice.

In a world where horrendous conflicts persist in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip, where migration and poverty pose intractable problems, where unbridled capitalist greed and wealth accumulation define success, where the concerns of the Global South are ignored, and where the planet’s fragile environment demands concerted action from world leaders, his simply expressed words urged us, regardless of faith or belief, to reflect on the deeper universal values we should cherish. He also prompted us to consider the individual actions we can take to advance a more compassionate and just society.

Despite the shadows of the sex scandals that clouded the Church, Pope Francis was a tireless pilgrim of hope as his 47 globe-trotting apostolic visits abroad took him to 68 countries and spread his steadfast message to every continent and almost every corner of the earth, including a memorable stop-over in Mauritius.

A few brief words won’t do justice to the scope and span of the world forays of Pope Francis. With his customary humility, he turned his eminent pulpit into the high moral voice of the downtrodden, the poor, those battered by life, endearing him to many millions and constantly reminding world leaders of the message of hope and compassion in a world ruled by brutal economic and military forces.

Among his many admonitions, the following quote about social media and now AI making instant hits with the young, is of universal interest: “That is how [the manipulators] of various ideologies operate: they destroy (or deconstruct) all differences so that they can reign unopposed. To do so, however, they need young people who have no use for history, who spurn the spiritual and human riches inherited from past generations and are ignorant of everything that came before them.”  It leads to a slow globalisation of indifference, a roadmap for disenchantment and disillusion on which clever manipulators thrive, pushing their unavowable and darker agendas.

We could go on for volumes but his formidable yet humble and attaching personality can best be summed up by this quote: “It is my desire that, in this our time, by acknowledging the dignity of each human person, we can contribute to the rebirth of a universal aspiration to fraternity.”

*  *  *

Impact of climate change on local environment

On the question of the global climate change and our planetary environment, Pope Francis was equally clear and forceful. With his landmark encyclical in 2015, Laudato Si’, the Pope set out, in 180 pages, his vision of “climate change [as] a global problem with grave implications: environmental, social, economic, political”, and warned of the “grave social debt” owed by the rich, already developed economies to the poor or developing countries struggling to get their foot on the ladder.

We began to understand the dramatic impact of global climate change on our local environment some ten years ago, and since we cannot be confident that the billions earmarked over the previous few years have been wisely spent or have had a positive effect on flash floods, overflowing drains, uncertain water resources, flood-prone areas, or the environmental impact of accelerated ‘betonnage’ on our agricultural landscape.

It is not simply an accounting question of monies spent correcting for mistakes or follies of our building permit system but raises far deeper questions on our relationships with the land and seas our forefathers left us and those we will leave behind for generations to come.

Are we on the right track when a major infrastructure project like a metro line can be declaimed from an Environment Impact Assessment or a strategic one on public transport?
Are environmental issues given sufficient prominence when permits for smart or less smart developments, when handled only at district levels or when promoters are invited to submit their own EIAs?

Are the incoming authorities satisfied with the corrective measures taken in the wake of the Wakashio environmental disaster to prevent any future recurrence of “stray ships” barging onto our shores or beaches?

There are many other questions that NGOs and concerned citizens will have, but there is no doubt that including the environmental perspective from professional urban and land planners is a growing necessity that extends beyond the material perspective.

Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 25 April 2025