Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis, died today at 7:35 a.m. at his residence in Santa Marta, in the Vatican. He was 88 years old, and had served as head of the Roman Catholic Church for 12 years.

Francis had experienced health complications in recent months, leading to a hospitalisation that brought him close to death in February.

Although he had recovered from the most serious health problems, he was still weak and suffering from breathing difficulties.

The Pope's last public message, delivered last Sunday in in the so-called “Blessing urbi et orbi”, emphasised the need for “disarmament” in order to achieve peace.

A close pope

The papacy of Pope Francis has been characterised by a style of personal closeness. He has presented himself as someone who is accessible and his desire was for the Catholic Church to be a welcoming place, with one of his favourite phrases being that "the Church is a mother".

Francis was a pope full of gestures towards other religions, which led him to develop a doctrine of fraternity that he saw as a solution to many of the world's problems.

That closeness has been particularly evident in gestures of affection towards people of other Christian denominations, including evangelicals.

He was certainly the Roman Catholic Pope who has met the most Evangelicals and Protestants, especially during the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation in 2017.

Such gestures were celebrated by some, but viewed with concern by many others, who understood that they did not lead to any profound change in the remaining differences between Catholics and evangelicals.

More ‘catholic’ and less ‘Roman’

In an analysis of Francis's pontificate on his first decade at the head of the Roman Catholic Church, Italian pastor and theologian Leonardo de Chirico shared some of the key points that have marked his papacy.

From the doctrinal viewpoint, his encyclicals indicate a shift of the Catholic magisterium towards becoming more ‘catholic’ (i.e. inclusive, Global South, absorbing, focused on social issues) and less ‘Roman’ (i.e. centered on Catholic distinctives)”, explained Chirico.

However, “none of them indicate that there is an evangelical move in the Roman Church. They are all aimed at making the church more ‘catholic’ but they are not open to a biblical reformation”, he added.

Regarding Francis' travel and politics, acoding to Chirico,he stood out as a pope who “put his attention on African and Asian countries. The appointments of cardinals were also made following a similar criterion. Under Francis the center of gravity shifted towards the Global South”.

Organisationally, Francis tried “to launch a synodal process” that would lead to a less centralised Roman Catholic Church.

Furthermore, Francis was a pope who was sensitive to social and ethical issues, especially in his encyclical Laudato Si, which was dedicated to environmental protection.

New conclave

The office is currently vacant until a conclave is convened in about two weeks' time, when the cardinals will vote to elect a new pope.

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