A fond farewell

Like many worldwide, we at Rural Ministries were saddened to hear of Pope Francis’s passing, a leader of immense grace and compassion. Throughout his tenure, Pope Francis embodied the virtues of humility, mercy, and love. His commitment to social justice, environmental stewardship, and the inclusivity of all people resonated deeply with Catholics and non-Catholics alike. His heart was invariably open to dialogue and understanding, and his legacy will be remembered through the countless lives he touched and inspired.

I was inspired by his chosen name, Francis. In the Jewish tradition, names carry spiritual significance - they hold a specific symbolic meaning, and this meaning is a key component of parents’ decisions to choose them. Moses, for example, may mean ‘drew out,’ while Joseph means ‘he will add.’ The name ‘Francis’ is often associated with the saint’s virtues, including humility, simplicity, and a close relationship with nature, so I can see why he deliberately chose this one; through his writings, his humility and concern for the environment were quite clear, speaking out in a way that other denominational leaders often avoided.

Pope Francis was deemed too liberal for traditionalists and too traditional for liberals, but his demonstration of Catholic spirituality was something I found personally helpful, especially during the pandemic. While I may have questions about Catholic practice (perhaps born out of ignorance), I have profound respect for their spirituality. Catholic authors, including Pope Francis, have written some of the best books I have read on personal faith, our identity, and our relationship with and understanding of the Holy Spirit.

I feel it is right to conclude this reflection with a copy of his last sermon, read on Easter Sunday by one of his aides:

Mary Magdalene, seeing that the stone of the tomb had been rolled away, ran to tell Peter and John. After receiving the shocking news, the two disciples also went out and - as the Gospel says - “the two were running together” (Jn 20:4). The main figures of the Easter narratives all ran! On the one hand, “running” could express the concern that the Lord’s body had been taken away; but, on the other hand, the haste of Mary Magdalene, Peter and John expresses the desire, the yearning of the heart, the inner attitude of those who set out to search for Jesus. He, in fact, has risen from the dead and therefore is no longer in the tomb. We must look for him elsewhere.

This is the message of Easter: we must look for him elsewhere. Christ is risen, he is alive! He is no longer a prisoner of death, he is no longer wrapped in the shroud, and therefore we cannot confine him to a fairy tale, we cannot make him a hero of the ancient world, or think of him as a statue in a museum! On the contrary, we must look for him and this is why we cannot remain stationary. We must take action, 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, look for him everywhere except in the tomb.

We must look for him without ceasing. Because if he has risen from the dead, then 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.

For this reason, our Easter faith, which opens us to the encounter with the risen Lord and prepares us to welcome him into our lives, is anything but a complacent settling into some sort of ‘religious reassurance.’ On the contrary, 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.

Pope Francis’s running has ended, and I believe he is now with the Christ he so clearly loved, but for us, the invitation to continue to look for Jesus and be filled with the light of his resurrection is quite compelling.

Simon Mattholie

CEO, Rural Ministries