<p>The 12-year papacy of Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday, was remarkable for the new directions he gave to the Church and the ideas he introduced to it. The Catholic Church has a long history and ecclesiastical tradition where individual leadership has not always made a mark, but there have been Popes, especially in recent times, who left their strong personal imprint on it. Pope Francis did so in many respects. A transformative leader, he was the first Jesuit Pope and the first from the Americas, home to almost half the Catholics in the world. While remaining the keeper of a strong legacy handed down through centuries, he prompted the Church to recognise the concerns of modern times and accept the new challenges that humanity is facing.</p>.The Pope who spoke for the poor.<p>Pope Francis tried to take the Church back to its roots and to rededicate it to the basic Christian ideals of compassion, tolerance and peace. He wanted the Church to reach out to marginalised communities, including the poor, migrants, and the LGBTQ+ community. He set an example by living in a modest guest house instead of the papal palace. He gave bigger roles for women in the Church and made the institution more socially inclusive. His support for same-sex marriages and a more tolerant policy on divorce and civil remarriage showed a willingness to recognise new social realities. He did not tolerate sexual abuse by priests and ended the impunity for the offenders in such cases. He was sensitive to issues such as climate change, and fervently spoke and acted for peace. He called for an end to the wars in Gaza and Ukraine in his final Easter sermon. He said: “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression and respect for the views of others.” It was this conviction which prompted him to champion interfaith dialogue and to host a conference in the Vatican that brought together religious leaders from across the world.</p>.<p>Pope Francis represented both continuity and change. He has been criticised for not going the whole hog in implementing some of the ideas he championed, like the role of women in the Church. He has also been criticised for being too radical for an institution like the Papacy. He had institutional limitations in translating some of his ideas into action. But the fact that he was willing to articulate them and set new directions shows a vision that is typically Christian and human. That was important in a world in which many of these values are forgotten.</p>
<p>The 12-year papacy of Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday, was remarkable for the new directions he gave to the Church and the ideas he introduced to it. The Catholic Church has a long history and ecclesiastical tradition where individual leadership has not always made a mark, but there have been Popes, especially in recent times, who left their strong personal imprint on it. Pope Francis did so in many respects. A transformative leader, he was the first Jesuit Pope and the first from the Americas, home to almost half the Catholics in the world. While remaining the keeper of a strong legacy handed down through centuries, he prompted the Church to recognise the concerns of modern times and accept the new challenges that humanity is facing.</p>.The Pope who spoke for the poor.<p>Pope Francis tried to take the Church back to its roots and to rededicate it to the basic Christian ideals of compassion, tolerance and peace. He wanted the Church to reach out to marginalised communities, including the poor, migrants, and the LGBTQ+ community. He set an example by living in a modest guest house instead of the papal palace. He gave bigger roles for women in the Church and made the institution more socially inclusive. His support for same-sex marriages and a more tolerant policy on divorce and civil remarriage showed a willingness to recognise new social realities. He did not tolerate sexual abuse by priests and ended the impunity for the offenders in such cases. He was sensitive to issues such as climate change, and fervently spoke and acted for peace. He called for an end to the wars in Gaza and Ukraine in his final Easter sermon. He said: “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression and respect for the views of others.” It was this conviction which prompted him to champion interfaith dialogue and to host a conference in the Vatican that brought together religious leaders from across the world.</p>.<p>Pope Francis represented both continuity and change. He has been criticised for not going the whole hog in implementing some of the ideas he championed, like the role of women in the Church. He has also been criticised for being too radical for an institution like the Papacy. He had institutional limitations in translating some of his ideas into action. But the fact that he was willing to articulate them and set new directions shows a vision that is typically Christian and human. That was important in a world in which many of these values are forgotten.</p>
