Pope Francis: A revolutionary leader passes at 88
Pope Francis has passed away at the age of 88. Jorge Mario Bergoglio had been leading the Catholic Church since 13 March 2013. The Argentine Jesuit became frequently unwell towards the end of his papacy. His last serious health issues emerged in the first half of February 2025.
"Pope Francis died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, at the age of 88 at his residence in the Vatican's Casa Santa Marta," reported the official Vatican News service.
Pope Francis remained with the faithful to the very end. On Holy Thursday, he upheld tradition by visiting a prison as a gesture of closeness, and he was with the faithful on Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday.
Pope Francis passed away at the age of 88
On 14 February 2025, he was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Polyclinic with symptoms of severe bronchitis. Less than five days later, bilateral pneumonia was diagnosed.
Due to upper respiratory infections, which he had increasingly experienced in recent years, the Pope was also admitted to Gemelli at the end of March 2023. It was there, two years earlier, in July 2021, that he underwent intestinal surgery.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio began his papal service on 13 March 2013. At the time, it was remarked that the 76-year-old Argentine Jesuit was a compromise choice and, due to his age, considered a "transitional" pope. He adopted the name of St. Francis of Assisi, patron of the poor and destitute.
From Buenos Aires to the Vatican
Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born in 1936 in a poor district of Buenos Aires to a family of Italian immigrants who had fled fascist Benito Mussolini’s regime in Argentina. He was educated as a chemist and joined the Jesuit order at the age of 22. He had five siblings.
Bergoglio studied at schools in Chile, Argentina, and the USA, where he learned philosophy, literature, and psychology. He was ordained a priest on 13 December 1969. In 1964-1965 he was a teacher of literature and psychology. From 1967-1970, he studied theology at the Faculty of Theology of Colegio Máximo San José in San Miguel. The future Pope was appointed auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires in 1992. He became the archbishop of its diocese five years later. In 2001, John Paul II elevated him to the rank of cardinal, giving him the title of presbyter of San Roberto Bellarmino.
Close to the Holy See
In 2005, Bergoglio was mentioned as one of the favourites to take the Holy See. However, the conclave then elected Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) as head of the Holy See, who resigned on 11 February 2013 due to, as he explained, declining health and lack of strength.
On 13 March 2013, during the second day of the conclave, in the fifth vote, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected Pope.
Pope Francis quickly instituted changes in the functioning of the papal institution. Foremost, he declined to reside in the usual residence, the Apostolic Palace, and instead chose an apartment in the Domus Sanctae Marthae. He spoke many languages: Spanish, Italian, German, French, Piedmontese, and English, and had a limited knowledge of Portuguese.
Has Pope Francis made a breakthrough?
Francis was the first pope not to take the name of any of his predecessors. He published three encyclicals. In "Laudato Si'," later known as the "green encyclical," he strongly emphasised the importance of caring for the planet and its climate. The encyclical "Fratelli Tutti" focused on fraternity and social friendship. His first, "Lumen Fidei," was about faith. Pope Francis also issued several exhortations and numerous documents, including apostolic letters and motu proprio.
He initiated the establishment of the Council of Cardinals. It was the first such body in the Vatican, and, like the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, it was meant as a response to the scandals of paedophilia in the Church.
As the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis found himself in an exceptional situation for years. His retired predecessor, Benedict XVI, until his death on 31 December 2022, resided within the Vatican, in a former monastery building. Their meetings, including the first one just after the election in Castel Gandolfo, have become part of Church history.
