Memorial services often include praising and celebrating the life of the deceased. However, the case of Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; December 17, 1936 – April 21, 2025) is different. Since receiving the news of his demise on April 21, almost all media outlets across the globe have described him as an exceptional, progressive and liberal religious leader. This is an unusual phenomenon in the increasingly divided 21st Century world. It seems unlikely that such condolences could have been offered to any other religious or political leader.

People hardly considered Pope Francis a historical figure during his lifetime. However, the pontiff showed (after his death) that those who truly care about alleviating human suffering or hardships have the strength to earn respect. This is a huge achievement, indeed.

Pope Francis repeatedly set an example of how to stand by people beyond the conservative confines of one’s own religious community. He had been vocal about issues affecting all marginalised and vulnerable populations, from homosexuals to women, and from children to refugees. The first Latin American pontiff had a different religious vision that taught him to respect others, their lifestyles, stand with courage and to support the victims of social, as well as economic, oppression. He was able to bring back the message of the Second Vatican Council of 1960 after a long time by saying: “Who am I to judge?“

Instead of resorting to unnecessary judgment and opinion, Pope Francis tried to help the oppressed. In the contemporary world, people have become increasingly intolerant and judgmental mainly because of religious bigotry and dogmatism. In such a situation, the head of the Roman Catholic Church sent the message of tolerance.

In January 2025, Pope Francis appointed Sister Simona Brambilla to head the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. With this, the Italian nun became the first woman to lead a major Vatican office, marking a significant step toward increased female leadership within the Catholic Church. It may be noted that although there are over 0.6 million nuns around the world, none of them has been given such an importance for so long.

Pope Francis also made a serious attempt to eliminate corruption and to modernise the church. At the same time, he admitted that it was a difficult job, stressing: “Reforming Rome is like cleaning the Sphinx of Egypt with a toothbrush.” Still, he did not give up. Once, he stated that the Church “is like a field hospital that must care for the sick, even when our actions incite envy and hatred in others“. Despite all these, he failed to achieve his goal.

However, failure does not diminish the importance of a philosophy. There is hardly any religious leader left who can follow the basic principle: The true meaning of religion is deeply intertwined with compassion and mercy.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das