In memory of Pope Francis
Pope Francis prays in front of the birthplace of St. Andrew Kim Dae-gun at the Solmoe Sanctuary in Dangjin, South Korea, Aug. 15, 2014. AP-Yonhap
Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, died at the age of 88 at 7:35 a.m. on Monday, just one day after Easter Sunday. I learned the news of his passing after I came back from an Easter picnic.
Pope Francis was the first pope from Latin America, the first pope from the Jesuits and the first pope who chose the name “Francis.” As this name suggests, he was simple, frugal, free, holistic and integrated.
In short, Pope Francis was a spokesman for the poor and the alienated. He broke down barriers with openness. He did his best to approach all kinds of people beyond denominations and differences.
Since his election as the 266th pope on March 13, 2013, he has traveled to 67 countries on five continents, wrote four encyclicals (Lumen Fidei, Laudato Si, Fratelli Tutti and Dilexit Nos) and seven Apostolic Exhortations.
Pope Francis is greeted by the faithful upon his arrival for the beatification Mass of Paul Yun Ji-Chung and his 123 martyr companions in Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 16, 2014. Paul Yun Ji-Chung, born in 1759, was among the earliest Catholics on the Korean Peninsula. AP-Yonhap
Everybody will agree with his reputation as a pope with an open-minded perspective who led a simple and frugal life.
In August 2014, Pope Francis visited South Korea for the first time since John Paul II in 1989. I was at that time sent as a missionary to Singapore, but Koreans fully embraced the pope, whose humility and love engulfed them.
Pope Francis, right, blesses a crying child who was not wanting to separate from his mother, near a Vatican gendarmerie, center, upon the Pope's arrival for the Closing Holy Mass of the 6th Asian Youth Day in Haemi Castle in Haemi, south of Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 17, 2014. AP-Yonhap
In 2016 and 2017, I had opportunities to attend the Papal Audience and Mass in St. Peter’s Square. At that time, I saw Pope Francis from afar, but his recommendation for us to go to the frontier has always lingered in my heart.
One day, during my stay in Rome, Sr. Innocencia registered for those who participated in the Pauline Charism Course the Pope’s blessing letter regarding the extraordinary year of mercy in 2016. Another blessing card was given on behalf of the 25th anniversary of my religious profession.
That is my memory of Pope Francis. His dynamic invitation to go to the frontier lets me be alive, creative, inspiring and positive. He should be remembered as an ongoing pilgrim, always moving forward.
Pope Francis, third from right, talks with Han Yang-won, second from left, chairman of the Association for Korean Native Religion, as he meets with South Korea's religious leaders at Myeong-dong Cathedral in Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 18, 2014. AP-Yonhap
Kim Hyeon-Jeong wrote about Pope Francis in “Even Speaking Requires Practice,” published in 2021.
A yellow ribbon donated by one of the relatives of the Sewol ferry disaster victims adorns Pope Francis as he meets the media during an airborne press conference on his journey back to Rome from Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 18, 2014. Pope Francis wrapped up his first trip to Asia on Monday by challenging Koreans — from the North and the South — to reject the "mindset of suspicion and confrontation" that cloud their relations and instead find new ways to forge peace on the war-divided peninsula. AP-Yonhap
Saying that the leader’s way of talking respects others, makes others comfortable with an open mind and is impartial, she quotes Pope Francis’ saying that the role and mission of the church is “to heal and console the wounds of those involved in divorce and abortion.” She also cites the pope's saying to the atheists: “There is no limits to God’s mercy. Even if you do not believe in God, you can still follow the conscience.”
In this picture made available by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis meets elderly women who were wartime victims of sexual abuses by Japanese occupiers during World War II, prior to a reconciliation Mass at Myeongdong Cathedral on the last day of his five-day visit to South Korea, Aug. 18, 2014. Pope Francis wrapped up his first trip to Asia by challenging Koreans — from the North and the South — to reject the "mindset of suspicion and confrontation" that cloud their relations and instead find new ways to forge peace on the war-divided peninsula. AP-Yonhap
While taking Pope Francis as a good example of a persuasive and inspiring leader, she analyzes his tone of speech as gentle and soft, simple but profound. “He is not being bound by formality; he does not list abstract words; he explains catechism in words that anyone can easily understand. He is also free from the dichotomous distinction and perspective of good and bad, the good and the evil. He is not biased. He always respects and embraces others.”
Pope Francis celebrates a Mass in Seoul's Myeongdong Cathedral on Aug. 18, 2014. Pope Francis hosted a Mass for peace and reconciliation, urging the divided Koreas to unite as "one family, one people," before wrapping up his five-day visit to South Korea. AFP-Yonhap
Pope Francis’ last homily on Easter Sunday let us be alive and constantly on the move:
“Mary Magdalene… ran to tell Peter and John…The two disciples also … ran together … The main figures of the Easter narratives all ran! … The haste of Mary Magdalene, Peter, and John expresses the desire, the yearning of the heart, inner attitude of those who set out to search for Jesus.
"We must look for him and this is why we cannot remain stationary. We must take action and set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters, look for him in everyday business, and look for him everywhere except in the tomb.
"He is present everywhere, he dwells among us, he hides himself and reveals himself even today in the sisters and brothers we meet along the way, in the most ordinary and unpredictable situations of our lives. He is alive and is with us always, shedding the tears of those who suffer and adding to the beauty of life through the small acts of love carried out by each of us.
"Easter spurs us to action, to run like Mary Magdalene and the disciples; it invites us to have eyes that can 'see beyond,' to perceive Jesus, the one who lives, as the God who reveals himself and makes himself present even today, who speaks to us, goes before us, surprises us. Like Mary Magdalene, every day we can experience losing the Lord, but every day we can also run to look for him again, with the certainty that he will allow himself to be found and will fill us with the light of his resurrection.”
Kim Ae-ran is a member of the Daughters of St. Paul (Figlie di San Paolo), living the Good News and proclaiming it with various means of social communication.