HIS MAJESTY THE KING has led the UK’s tributes to Pope Francis, who died this morning at the age of 88.
King Charles, who with Queen Camilla paid a brief courtesy visit to Pope Francis during their state visit to Italy earlier this month said: “My wife and I were most deeply saddened to learn of the death of Pope Francis. Our heavy hearts have been somewhat eased, however, to know that His Holiness was able to share an Easter Greeting with the Church and the world he served with such devotion throughout his life and ministry.
“His Holiness will be remembered for his compassion, his concern for the unity of the Church and for his tireless commitment to the common causes of all people of faith, and to those of goodwill who work for the benefit of others. His belief that care for Creation is an existential expression of faith in God resounded with so many across the world. Through his work and care for both people and planet, he profoundly touched the lives of so many.”
He went on: “The Queen and I remember with particular affection our meetings with His Holiness over the years and we were greatly moved to have been able to visit him earlier in the month. We send our most heartfelt condolences and profound sympathy to the Church he served with such resolve and to the countless people around the world who, inspired by his life, will be mourning the devastating loss of this faithful follower of Jesus Christ.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said that he stood with “millions around the world in grieving” Pope Francis’s death. “His leadership in a complex and challenging time for the world and the Church”, Sir Keir continued, “was often courageous, yet always came from a place of deep humility. Pope Francis was a pope for the poor, the downtrodden and the forgotten. He was close to the realities of human fragility, meeting Christians around the world facing war, famine, persecution and poverty. Yet he never lost the faith-fuelled hope of a better world.
“That hope was at the heart of his papacy,” Sir Keir added. “His determination to visibly live out his faith inspired people across the world to see afresh the Church’s teachings of mercy and charity. With his death, we are reminded once more of his call to care for one another across different faiths, backgrounds, nations and beliefs.”
Meanwhile, it is the first time that both the Papacy and the See of Canterbury have been simultaneously vacant for 334 years, after the deposition of William Sancroft and the death of Alexander VIII in 1691. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, issued the following statement.
“There is something fitting about the Holy Father, Pope Francis, dying on Easter Monday – or “Monday of the Angels” or “Little Easter”, as this day is often known in Europe and South America. As the Church recalls that through the message of an angel the Good News is announced “He is not here, He has risen”, so Christians of all denominations join in mourning the death of Pope Francis, but also sharing in the deep consolation that he now enters into the joy of the Lord in this Easter season. Indeed, having delivered a final apostolic blessing in St Peter’s Square on the Day of the Resurrection, this faithful servant of the Lord is called home to his Father’s house.
“From my Anglican perspective with his emphasis on the poor, creation, evangelism and the renewal of the church, there was much to admire and welcome in Pope Francis’s pontificate. In his humility and his love for the poor and marginalised, he was instantly recognisable as a follower of Jesus, and it was this that instinctively drew Christians of all denominations towards him. He used his pontificate and visits in various ways to draw attention to those parts of the Church that are often forgotten or persecuted and his closeness to those living in fear or under conflict has been only too apparent.
“Together with my fellow Anglicans, I share in the intense sorrow at the death of this good and holy man, who brought our churches ever closer together. Anglican and Catholic primates officiated together in Rome; Anglican and Catholic bishops were commissioned to minister alongside each other across the world; Choral Evensong was sung for the first time in St Peter’s Basilica. Under his pontificate even cricket became a channel for ecumenism, with regular tours of the Vatican XI to England, which Pope Francis rightly saw as an opportunity to build bridges of fraternal solidarity and to promote Christian unity.
“Ecumenism is not something we simply talk about – it is something we do. As Pope Francis said to me when we met in Rome, it is about walking together, working together, and praying together. We prayed together that day, saying the Lord’s Prayer in our own language. Then and since, I have been struck by the immeasurable importance of that first word – “Our”. As Christians, every time we say this prayer, we declare our belonging to our shared Father in heaven – and our belonging to each other. Uttering that very first word allows us – to borrow from Pope Francis’ homily at the Anglican Chaplaincy in Rome – to recognise one another as we truly are: brothers and sisters in Christ, inseparably united through our common baptism.
“In choosing the name ‘Francis’, the late Pope set a bold agenda for the rebuilding of the Church, for the care of creation and seeking compassion, justice and mercy for all people but particularly the marginalised and displaced. So today, in common with many around the world, whatever our denomination, I pray for the soul of a faithful and holy Christian, one who bore the demands of his office with courage and determination, and who showed us in his ministry and mission, his living and his dying how to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.”
