South Florida leaders praise legacy and leadership of 'the people's pope'

MIAMI — South Florida’s religious and political leaders on Monday mourned the passing of Pope Francis but also celebrated his ground-breaking spiritual leadership of the Catholic Church and messages of reform and inclusion.

The legacy of a pontiff that would come to be known as “the people’s pope” was defined by a series of firsts, said Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski. Francis was the first Jesuit pope, the first pope from the Americas, the first Pope to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress, the first to take the name of Francis, after St. Francis of Assisi, and the first Pope to appoint women to high positions in church’s governing body.

“He certainly put his mark on the church,” Wenski said Monday morning during a press conference. In an earlier statement, he said, “Pope Francis saw the Church as a ‘field hospital’ called to tend to the wounded on the battle fields of life offering her medicine of mercy to all.”

Francis died at the age of 88 on Monday, less than a day after his last public appearance on Easter, where he offered a plea for peace to throngs at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. Francis, who suffered from chronic lung disease, had only last month been released after 38 spending days in the hospital for a respiratory crisis that developed into double pneumonia.

In a press conference at the Archdiocese of Miami held before a Mass to honor Fracis, Wenski recalled his first meeting with the then-new pope — an Argentine native who, like many South Florida’s residents, had roots in Latin America— and making him laugh.

“I told him that I was from Miami, and I said, the best thing about Miami is that it is so close to the United States,” Wenski said. “The pope really laughed at that. So he had a great sense of humor.”

Wenski, who later led a Mass in the pope’s honor, said also noted how a frail Francis had worked up until the last moments of his life, speak at an Easter Sunday event. “You could say that he died with his boots on,”

At the Vatican, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, announced that the Pope died at around 7:35 a.m. local time .

“His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and His church,” said Ferrell in a statement. “He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with faithfulness, courage, and universal love, especially for the poorest and most marginalized.”

Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio to Italian immigrants on December 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina and became pope in 2013. Francis brought an era of reform to a 2,000-year-old institution. He became pope at a time when the world’s trust within the church, and other institutions, was eroding.

The 266th pope led with humble demeanor and lived a modest lifestyle — choices that stood in contrast to some previous popes. He also ushered in an era of reform into the Catholic Church, marked by his commitment to helping the poor and marginalized, his strong stances against corruption and advocacy for the environment. His efforts to soften some of the church’s traditional positions made him a widely popular religious figure but were not always embraced by its conservative clergy and members.

“Many people were touched by the pope,” Wenski said. “I heard a lot of people say, I’m not a Catholic, but I like this pope.”

Though Francis never visited South Florida, his landmark visit to Cuba in 2015 was closely watched and celebrated in South Florida. Early on in his pontificate, Francis named the first and only Haitian Cardinal in history, Chibly Langlois, and he frequently appealed for help for the struggling island nation.

Wenski said the act of naming cardinals in smaller countries like Haiti could be perceived as a way to say “it’s not your wealth or your status that you know defines your importance in the eyes of God, it’s the fact that you are a child of God.”

Miami leaders react to Pope’s passing

Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava issues a statement on the passing of Pope Francis in an X post early Monday morning.

“My deepest condolences to the Catholic community around the world and all who cherished his deep humanity and humility, following the loss of Pope Francis — a spiritual leader who deeply cared for our most vulnerable and became an example of peace and compassion in the world.”

U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson also lamented the loss of Pope Francis in her own X post.

“My heart goes out to the Catholic community and all who were inspired by Pope Francis as we mourn his passing,” she said. He was a humble champion for the poor, an advocate for the marginalized, and brought tremendous hope and compassion to millions worldwide.”

Francis was also known for his openness to engaging in interfaith dialogue between Catholics and other denominations, an effort that’s also been reflected between various religious groups in Miami.

“Throughout his papacy, Pope Francis was a strong advocate for peace, justice, and interfaith understanding. His efforts to build bridges between different religious communities, including Islam, have left a lasting legacy,” the Coalition of South Florida Muslim Organizations (COSMOS) wrote in a statement to the Herald.

During his adolescence, Francis grew up in Buenos Aires around many Jewish and Muslim immigrants, which gave him a different perspective on interfaith relations than other popes who were raised in Europe around majority Catholic populations, according to religious scholars.

The Greater Miami Jewish Federation, Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and the Rabbinical Association of Greater Miami (RAGM) shared their condolences to the Catholic community, in a statement on Monday as well.

“Our thoughts are with our Catholic brothers and sisters in mourning. May his legacy of service continue to inspire people of good faith around the world,” the Jewish groups wrote.

“Pope Francis repeatedly condemned antisemitism as a ‘sin,’ and during his time as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he stood strongly in solidarity with the Jewish community after the terror attack on the Argentine Mutual Israelite Association (AMIA), demanding justice for the victims,” the statement said.

Francis was also an advocate for peace and humanitarian relief in Gaza throughout his papacy. In his final weeks leading up to his death, Francis took video calls with the Holy Family parish in Gaza, according to Vatician News and in his final public appearance on Easter Sunday, he described the conditions in Gaza as “dramatic and deplorable, calling for an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and humanitarian access to those in need,” according to COSMOS.

The South Florida Muslim Federation also shared its condolences in a statement to the Herald.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the Catholic community of South Florida on the passing of Pope Francis, a global advocate for peace and unity whose final words called for a ceasefire in Gaza,” the Muslim Federation wrote. “May we continue to stand together in a spirit of mutual respect and shared humanity.”

A message of humility

In an interview last month when Francis was hospitalized, the president of Belen Jesuit Preparatory School, Father Guillermo M. García-Tuñón, or Father ‘Willie’, recalled Francis’ impact on the Catholic church and the world.

“He’s been very vocal about the importance of the church being humble and the church being at the service of those who are most in need,” he said. “The opportunity to rattle the cage a little bit, to kind of wake us up to a more compassionate perspective to those who are in need ... I think is one that the church needs, and has always needed.”

García-Tuñón recalled a phrase that Francis said early on in his papacy about humility among Catholic leaders, a stance that defined Francis’ legacy within the church.

“He said that shepherds need to smell like their sheep,” García-Tuñón said. “In other words ... the shepherd has to have a very close intimate relationship with the people that he serves, because he has to remember that the role of priest is a role of service. You’re not a priest for the sake of for your own sake. You’re a priest for the sake of the people that you serve.”

In Miami, a place that’s on the front lines of battling climate change and natural disasters, Francis’ strong stance on protecting the environment is particularly relevant.

Dan Rober, an associate professor of Catholic studies at Sacred Heart University, said Laudato si’, Pope Francis’ radical statement on care for the environment, will likely be “the most remembered document, and possibly one of the most remembered aspects of this pontificate centuries from now.”

At his last public appearance at Easter Sunday Mass in Saint Peter’s Square, Pope Francis said we should not give into the sadness or fleeting things of the world, but instead “we must run, filled with joy” in meeting the Lord and rediscovering “the inestimable grace of being his friends,” according to coverage from the Vatican News.

“Sisters, brothers, in the wonder of the Easter faith, carrying in our hearts every expectation of peace and liberation, we can say: with You, O Lord, everything is new. With you, everything begins again,” Francis said.

-----------

Miami Herald staff writer Michael Butler contributed to this article.