“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” (John 21:15b)
May 6, 2025
Hello Everyone –
My message to you comes on the eve of the beginning of the conclave to elect the next successor to St. Peter. Given this poignant moment, I offer you some of the thoughts I recently shared at a special Mass April 29 as we prayed for the peaceful repose of the soul of Pope Francis. I am also including a prayer for God’s blessings on the conclave itself.
In 1963, Morris West published his novel, “The Shoes of the Fisherman.” Five years later, it would become a major motion picture with an all-star cast. Essentially, it is the story of an unexpected successor to the Chair of St. Peter.
About 40 minutes or so into the film, the audience learns that “the pope is dead!” — and the wheels of tradition and history are set in motion. Standing on the rooftop of one of the buildings overlooking the piazza of St. Peter’s Basilica, a reporter (played by David Janssen) details the process to unfold following the death of a pope.
At one point during this summary, the reporter states: “On the third day, they will bury him clothed in full pontificals. They will seal him in three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead to keep him from the damp and to carry his certificate of death, and the last one of elm — so that he may seem at least like other men who go to the grave in a wooden box.”
On Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the Vatican, the world witnessed the mortal remains of a man transported to the grave in a wooden box. This son of Argentina was a mild-mannered, jovial man, a churchman with a flair for surprises, and the reigning pope for over 12 years. He was someone who made history in our own time as the first non-European pope in over 1,300 years. This particular man was unquestionably controversial at times — but nonetheless a person of profound faith who labored tirelessly as a pastor to the very last hours of his life.
For Pope Francis, evangelization was one of the guiding principles of his pontificate. Throughout his tenure, he reiterated his conviction that the Church is to be a home for everyone. He envisioned that the Church should be a source of care and healing for the problems people faced — a “field hospital” — and he called for the Church’s ministers to “smell like the sheep.” Strangely novel to some — and threatening to others.
Pope Francis’ mission was to make direct contact with individuals and peoples — always eager to draw close to everyone, especially those who found themselves on the margins of life — whatever that meant in the given situation.
He gave himself without measure and expressed a broad range of concerns on which he focused for his years as pope: paternal care for migrants and refugees — the environment — interreligious dialogue — outreach to society’s most forgotten — and in the true spirit of the Pontifex Maximus — someone desirous of building bridges — not walls.
But it is safe to say that these meager reflections on the life and ministry of Pope Francis only scratch the surface of the man and his time as pope. We are left to ponder an earthly life now complete and the legacy that is his. But we must also turn our attention to the future and who will come next to Peter’s Chair. Let us approach the throne of grace humbly, seeking wisdom, and trusting in the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
O God, eternal shepherd,
who govern your flock with unfailing care,
grant in your boundless fatherly love
a pastor for your Church
who will please you by his holiness
and to us show watchful care.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
As I do for you, please pray for me,
Most Reverend Jeffrey S. Grob
Archbishop of Milwaukee
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