Black ribbons and half-roundels adorned the outside of St. Mary’s Basilica in downtown Phoenix and its adjacent courtyard April 22 as a sign of mourning for Pope Francis. The Diocese of Phoenix celebrated the life of the Holy Father with a Remembrance Mass that evening, mourning the death of the pope.
During his homily, diocesan Vicar General and basilica Rector Fr. John Muir recalled meeting Pope Francis a year and a half ago.
“What struck me after about 10 seconds in the room with him wasn’t his title or his ecclesiastical power but his warmth, his joy, his almost infinite capacity to tease people,” Fr. Muir said. “But also, how he listened so attentively. There was a woman who had been there years before in a similar meeting, and he said, ‘I remember what you asked the last time you were here.’ And she was a little startled. He gave his time like he was a grandfather with nowhere else to go.”
Fr. Muir noted Pope Francis’ devotion to St. Mary Magdalene while reflecting on the Gospel passage for Easter Monday featuring her encounter with the resurrected Christ.
“I think perhaps Mary Magdalene represents what Pope Francis hoped all of us might become, people who even in the midst of sorrow and confusion and tears, and even degradation, encounter the risen Jesus,” he said.
In recalling the pontiff’s legacy, he highlighted gestures throughout his pontificate, from welcoming children who’d spontaneously run to him to offering a “silent benediction over the whole world” in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Fr. Muir also reflected on some quotes such as “Who am I to judge?” and telling Christians not to be such “sourpusses.”
“That’s not a carefully crafted motto but it was just an authentic cry at the heart of this man, this shepherd. It was a doorway into mercy, especially for those who felt far from the Church,” he said.
Pope Francis encouraged the concept of synodality, Fr. Muir said, pointing out that the Church is not a fortress or a factory, but a family.
“The Church is a community of men and women who walk together and listen to one another, bear each other’s burdens and seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit together,” Fr. Muir said.
“That I think touches on Pope Francis’s dream for the Church, a Church that doesn’t just talk about Jesus but that walks with Jesus and with one another. A synodal Church, a Church that listens, especially to those often unheard. It’s one that looks more like the poor Christ and less like a mighty corporation, a Church that smells like sheep because she’s with sheep, because we are sheep.”
Knights of Columbus Supreme Director Sean Halpain recalled Pope Francis’ sense of humor when he joined other members of the board of directors for a pilgrimage to Rome in February 2020.
“At the end, in English, he said, ‘Well, I will pray for you.’ And then, he paused, and then he had a little bit of a smile, and he said, ‘Please pray for me — this is not an easy job,’” said Halpain, a former state deputy for the Knights’ Arizona State Council and parishioner at St. Timothy in Mesa, Ariz.
Caitlin Cushing, a parishioner from St. Mary Magdalene in Gilbert, Ariz., remembered seeing the pope when he was first elected in 2013. As a graduate student in the United Kingdom at the time, she and her friends flew to Rome to witness the historic transition.
“He was very important to the Church, to me,” Cushing said through tears while holding her 18-month-old son Alexander. “I believe very much in what he stood for in the Church, and so, I just wanted to be here.”
For Gilbert Arvizu, 32, Pope Francis’s pontificate influenced his young adult life and career.
“He loved so many people and it showed through not just his words but through his actions,” said Arvizu, a parishioner at the basilica. “He was the pope throughout all of my college studies and my young professional career, and he was just that example of social action going out into the community looking beyond the four walls of the parish and serving and looking at those who are often ignored.”
Sister of the Sacred Heart Betty Banja found inspiration from Pope Francis in her work with refugees through Catholic Charities.
“Pope Francis’s legacy for me means great love to the most vulnerable people. And he said, ‘Let us look at our brothers and sisters who are immigrants… let us see the image of Christ in them,’” she said.
Attending the Mass as a part of an ecumenical delegation, the Right Rev. Jennifer Reddall, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona, said that even though she’s not Catholic, Pope Francis’ voice provided guidance for her.
“He’s been a very steady moral voice for the whole world, so all of us from whatever denomination, could hear his voice and his clarion call for caring for the migrant, caring for the poor, caring for those in need, and I’m really going to miss that voice,” she said.
A bilingual rosary for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis will be held at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral in Phoenix on Friday at 6 p.m.
Fr. Edgardo Iriarte, who worked with Cardinal Jorge (Pope Francis) for 15 years, will be celebrating a Spanish Memorial Mass at St. Mary in Chandler, Ariz., at 1 p.m. on Friday.
On Sunday, Bishop John Dolan will celebrate a Memorial Mass honoring Pope Francis at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral at 9 a.m. The Mass will be televised on CW7 and streamed on the Diocese of Phoenix’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.
