Pope had ‘pastoral heart for all humanity,’ archbishop says at Mass

With a framed portrait of Pope Francis in the foreground, Archbishop Charles C. Thompson delivers a homily during a Mass for the late pope on April 24 in SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis. (Photo by Natalie Hoefer)

By Natalie Hoefer

A framed portrait of Pope Francis stood on a black-shrouded easel surrounded by flowers at the front of the sanctuary in SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis.

For the roughly 350 people present and many others watching online, it stood as a visual reminder during a Mass celebrated for the late pope on April 24.

After the opening hymn, Archbishop Charles C. Thompson called to mind the solemn reason for the Mass.

“As we gather, we pray for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis,” he said.

“As I heard one cardinal mention, ‘We have had a death in the family—in the Catholic family.’

“This is a bittersweet moment for us. On one hand, we gather to express our grief. On the other hand, we gather to express our faith in Pope Francis’ gain of everlasting life, made possible through the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

‘A pastoral heart for all of humanity’

In his homily, Archbishop Thompson noted that many “have been asking or reporting on the so-called legacy of Pope Francis” since his death on April 21.

They have named many legacies, the archbishop said: “a witness of mercy and humility, a reformer, a pope of the people, expanding the role of women, not being one to judge, reaching out to those on the margins and peripheries, advocating for migrants and refugees, demanding greater care of creation, outlining a blueprint for greater synodality, exhorting us to be pilgrims of hope and missionary disciples.” (Related: See more news regarding the death of Pope Francis)

But, he continued, when asked about his own legacy during an interview with CBS’ Norah O’Donnell on April 24, 2024, Pope Francis responded that “the Church is the legacy. The Church not only through the pope, but through you … every Christian … everyone.”

In October that same year, Pope Francis wrote his fourth and final encyclical, “Dilexit nos” (“He loved us”) on the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ.

Archbishop Thompson quoted the pontiff’s words from the encyclical that, “… if love reigns in our heart, we become in a complete and luminous way the persons we are meant to be. For every human being is created above all else for love. In the deepest fiber of our being, we were made to love and to be loved” (#21).

The archbishop noted that, in this notion of love, “Pope Francis could be as firm as he was compassionate. He had a keen ability to read the signs of the times, coin a catchy phrase like ‘the Church is a field hospital’ or ‘the smell of the sheep,’ to capture the imagination or frame the narrative.”

At the same time, the archbishop said, the late pope “was not afraid to speak frankly about such sins as arrogance, pride, selfishness, clericalism, abuse and other difficult issues. He did not shy away from challenging others, including bishops and priests.

“Authentic love, he understood, is not void of objective truth, but always seeking to speak truth in charity.”

Archbishop Thompson, who was appointed shepherd of the Church in central and southern Indiana by Pope Francis in 2017, noted the pope’s frequent call for “accompaniment, encounter, dialogue and respect for the dignity of persons.”

In doing so, he said, “Pope Francis sought to encourage a greater openness of hearts and minds to the transforming grace of encounter with Jesus Christ.”

This call follows the example of St. Peter in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, Archbishop Thompson explained.

In the reading, “St. Peter exudes a boldness of witness following the curing of a crippled man,” he said. “He speaks truth and charity as he preaches the authentic identity of Jesus Christ … .

“Yet, in a spirit of accompaniment, however, he encouraged the people to repent and be converted while stressing the transforming grace and mercy of God very available to them.”

Pope Francis sought to extend that mercy to all on Earth. The dark, rainy evening of March 27, 2020, is an example.

“For many, the image of Pope Francis standing alone before the crucifix in St. Peter’s Square, praying for the world in the midst of COVID, is especially etched in our memories,” said Archbishop Thompson.

That love permeated his pontificate.

“While holding fast to Church doctrine,” the archbishop noted, Pope Francis “exuded a pastoral heart for all of humanity, always anchored in the

long-standing Catholic teaching of human dignity from the moment of conception to natural death, as rooted in the reality that every person is created in the image of God.

“He sought to welcome, embrace, unite, heal and reconcile—not in his name, but in the name of Jesus.”

‘Blessed and lucky to have had him’

After the Mass, several of the worshipers spoke with The Criterion about their thoughts on the late pope. His love for and outreach to those on the peripheries was a common theme.

“He was very much focused on those who are at the margins and those who are forgotten by society,” said Andra Liepa, a member of St. Monica Parish in Indianapolis. “His very first Holy Thursday, he did the Holy Thursday service at a prison and washed prisoners’ feet.

“That to me was just a description of his entire papacy. He went to where people are. I think that’s his greatest gift to us, to remind us that we’re called to do as Jesus did.”

Liepa’s fellow parishioner, Alma Maldonado, also commented on Pope Francis going to “the most marginalized and to the poor.”

But she also noted how he “spoke on several topics that are very controversial. I feel like within those talks that he did about those topics that are very sensitive, he definitely showed God’s love toward people.”

Several members of the Little Sisters of the Poor and residents of their St. Augustine Home for the Aged in Indianapolis were present at the Mass.

Sister Fatima Claire noted that in the special “spirit and charism” of the last three popes, “I find that John Paul II is the life, and then Benedict [XVI] is the way.

“And then Pope Francis is the truth—to see the reality of the people he served, the poor who he loved so much.”

The death of Pope Francis is “very sad” for Charlene Fletcher, especially since she was just welcomed into the full communion of the Church on April 20 at St. Rita Church in Indianapolis.

“Even before I was Catholic, I paid attention to Pope Francis,” she said. “I’ve just watched him over the years and have been just in awe of the kind of person that he was. He was a man of the people. And so, as a brand new Catholic, it’s very sad.”

Donning an “I love Pope Francis” shirt, Melissa Wakefield was sad, too, her eyes tearing up as she spoke.

“He was such an extraordinary man,” said the member of St. Malachy Parish in Brownsburg. She admired his “openness to all people in the world, his acceptance of all people, no matter where they came from, what their race was, their economic position or anything, just his complete acceptance.”

Wakefield never met Pope Francis. But as a flight attendant, she worked with other flight attendants who had served on the pope’s flight to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families in 2015.

“He gave every person on that crew the time to sit with him privately on the plane to talk with him,” she said they told her. “He said they could ask him whatever they wanted. They could do confession or they could just talk to him. I thought that was really amazing.

“We are all so blessed and lucky to have had him for the time that we did.” †