I wish to express how deeply moved I am at the death of Pope Francis. I am one of very many Christians in churches not yet in full communion with his church who appreciated the gifts he brought to the whole body of Christ on earth. His emphasis on tenderness, mercy, and the care of the marginalised was clear in both his teaching and his life.
I remember a moment when I was present at an audience with him. When it came to my turn to speak with him, I spontaneously used the title “Holiness,” and I immediately stopped. I was surprised because I felt I was truly in the presence of holiness. As I looked at him, he asked me to pray for him, something I know he often did, but this was not an abstract or perfunctory request. It came from the heart and was directed at me, the human being he had before him in that moment. As he passed on I felt in me the desire to love others more intensely, in some way copying what I had witnessed.
Since then, he continued to make surprising statements that felt to me as if they came from the heart of Jesus. His care for creation matched his kindness for frail humanity. But above all, I appreciated his emphasis upon synodality. This somewhat mysterious word contains something far more than an idea. It points to a way of being, a revolution in many of the attitudes that had appeared prevalent previously in the Roman communion. The church was not to be like a mini monarchy but to be a people travelling together, sharing insights and decisions, as they reach out in the name of God-who-is-love to this suffering world.
Not only is a church like that one that the rest of us feel drawn to unite with, but a church like that mirrors the intuition in many of our hearts: a church where Christ in the midst of his people reaches out to all. It simultaneously validates Christian experience in many non-Roman Catholic traditions and makes the Roman Catholic church appear more Christ-like. Synodality is a tremendous gift to the search for Christian unity.
Even as I am happy yet sad to be in communion with Pope Francis beyond the grave, I hope that his legacy will carry on. I hope that the best qualities he showed will be displayed in all of us and, most especially, that the wave of synodality (its communion, participation, and mission) will continue. It is vital for us all.