Pope Francis died unexpectedly this morning at about 7:35 a.m. Rome time. Yesterday he met with Vice President and Mrs. Vance.
Francis was 88, and had served in the office for 12 years. He formerly was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires. He was the first Jesuit and first South American to be elected pope. His politics reflected his growing up in the Peron era.
An appreciation of his papacy concludes thus.
There will not be another pope like Francis. Whatever one’s opinion of him, he changed the face of the Catholic Church. What remains to be seen is whether his changes last.
