Thank God for the life and witness of Pope Francis! His humility, pursuit of justice, care for the marginalized, and commitment to environmental stewardship made me grateful to be a Christian.

In 2018 I waited in a chapel at Geneva, Switzerland for the arrival of the pope. Church leaders from several hundred Christian traditions had gathered at World Council of Churches headquarters for ecumenical discussions. I was there (as an observer) to represent Mennonite World Conference and Anabaptists worldwide. For the first time in twenty-six years, a pope planned to be at Geneva for a World Council of Churches meeting.

As Francis and his entourage came down the center aisle, voices from many cultures sang, “The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord.” The atmosphere was joyful, like being at a reunion when a beloved member of the family absent for a while shows up.  

Francis spoke twice that day, and on the second occasion I took the attached photo. To the far left is World Council of Churches General Secretary Olav Fyske Tveitin. Next to Francis is his assistant Monsignor Mauricio Beltz of Colombia. The Pope took the podium with grace and gentle authority. “Pontiff” means “bridge builder,” and that suited Francis well. His sermon (translated in writing from Italian) included commitment to collaborative Christian witness to a broken world:

“For us as Christians, walking together is not a ploy to strengthen our own positions, but an act of obedience to the Lord and love for our world. Whenever we say, ‘Our Father,’ we feel an echo within us of our being sons and daughters, but also of our being brothers and sisters.”

Almost daily since October, 2023, Pope Francis phoned Christian leaders in Gaza to support and encourage. His Easter sermon (yesterday!) called for peacemaking in various parts of the world, but highlighted Israel and Palestine:

“I express my closeness to the sufferings of Christians in Palestine and Israel, and to all the Israeli people and the Palestinian people. The growing climate of anti-Semitism throughout the world is worrisome. Yet at the same time, I think of the people of Gaza, and its Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation. I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace!”

(Read the pope’s entire Easter message at: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/urbi/documents/20250420-urbi-et-orbi-pasqua.html)

Thank God for the life and witness of Pope Francis!