I’m not Catholic, but I have been a fan of Pope Francis from the get-go. He seemed to be a harbinger of change for the Catholic Church: he said, “Who am I to judge?” when asked a question about gay people in 2013.
In contrast, his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, was leading the church in 2008 when it refused to sign a declaration from the United Nations pushing for laws that penalize homosexuality to be abolished
When LGBTQ organizations provided the Vatican with a document detailing the laws that criminalized LGBTQ people across the world. In January 2023, Pope Francis called such laws “unjust,” and doubled down on his statement, “Being homosexual isn’t a crime.”
Later that year, Pope Francis announced that blessings should be extended to LGBTQ couples, though it did not change the church’s opinion on marriage. The Vatican also cleared the way for priests to baptize transgender people, as long as it doesn’t result in “public scandal or confusion among the faithful.”
He wasn’t perfect: receiving criticism for anti-LGBTQ remarks he made and for approving a document (released by the Vatican in April 2024) stating that transition surgery and gender fluidity directly opposed human dignity. “Any sex-change intervention, as a rule, risks threatening the unique dignity the person has received from the moment of conception.”
So, he was like us: many steps forward, a few steps back.
As a not very devout Buddhist, I feel really sad that Pope Francis has died. Like his namesake, Saint Francis of Assisi, he brought an open-mindedness and humility to his role and – in my heart – I “felt” his goodness and humanity.
Rest in Peace Dear Man. Rest in Peace.
P.S. If you want to see this amazing man in action, watch this video where he talks with a boy who asks the Pope if the boy’s (deceased) atheist father is in heaven: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRbUTfSds0U
