With sorrow as his children in faith, we mourn the passing of our Holy Father, Pope Francis.
A shepherd who led with mercy and humility the past 12 years.

The son of Italian immigrants, Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina in 1936.
As a teenager, the future Pope Francis experienced Jesus’ Divine Mercy in the confessional and by this personal encounter with Christ he was inspired to enter the priesthood and join the Jesuit order.

Throughout his priesthood, Argentina suffered through economic crises and social upheaval. Despite this, for over 40 years, he guided the Church through each of these with keen attention to the Gospel. From priest to bishop, cardinal, and then pope, he kept the same mission: to walk humbly with Christ and preach His Gospel of love and mercy.

On March 13, 2013, the world met him for the first time and despite descending from a line of 255
prior popes, it was a novelty in many ways. He was the first pope to take the name Francis, the first pope from the Americas, and the first Jesuit pope. Despite all of these new changes, he always sought to be the leader the Church has needed since Christ founded it: a pastor who placed prayer & mercy at the heart of his ministry.

Rather than talk about himself, Pope Francis began his papacy by immediately praying for his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. His second act was to ask for prayers himself.

During his pontificate, he urged us to go to the peripheries, embrace the marginalized, and trust in God’s unceasing love–the message that Christ preaches in every chapter of the Gospels.

As any good shepherd should, Pope Francis sought to bring us closer to Jesus by bringing us closer to Mary & St. Joseph. He did this by spreading his devotion to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots, and the humble, sleeping St. Joseph.

His legacy is one of radical love and compassion. As we give thanks for his life and leadership, let us honor him in the way he first asked—by praying for him today and always.