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ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE -- Pope Leo XIV paid tribute to Pope Francis connected Tuesday connected the archetypal day of his death, recalling his preaching astir God's mercy and his gestures of solidarity with mediocre people.
"We convey the Lord for the large acquisition of the beingness of Francis, to the religion and the world," Leo said.
The American pope delivered the tribute successful Italian portion speaking with reporters aboard the papal level heading from Angola to Equatorial Guinea, the last limb of his four-nation African trip.
Pope Francis waves to the assemblage connected the juncture of his sojourn astatine the Central Mosque successful Bangui's Muslim enclave of PK5, Central African Republic, connected Nov. 30, 2015.
AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File
Francis died connected Easter Monday past twelvemonth aft suffering a stroke. He had been astatine the Vatican recovering from a five-week infirmary enactment for treble pneumonia, and had managed to present a last Easter salute to the assemblage with a popemobile romp done St. Peter's Square.
His death, astatine 88, acceptable the signifier for the conclave that elected Leo a fewer weeks later. It was an result for which Francis had laid the groundwork by promoting the erstwhile missionary priest, Robert Prevost, whom helium considered "a saint."
In his tribute, Leo recalled with precision immoderate of Francis' astir memorable homilies and messages, saying helium "gave truthful overmuch to the religion with his life, with his witness, with his connection and with his gestures."
"So galore times what helium did was unrecorded genuinely being adjacent to the poorest, the smallest, the sick, children, the elderly," helium said.
He cited Francis' preaching promoting quality fraternity and "authentic respect" among each people, arsenic good arsenic a peculiar Holy Year helium called successful 2015 to stress God's mercy and forgiveness. Francis famously opened the twelvemonth successful the Central African Republic, and Leo delivered his tribute conscionable arsenic his level was flying implicit that portion of Africa.
Leo recalled Francis' archetypal Sunday noon supplication arsenic pope, and a Mass helium celebrated 2 days earlier his pontificate was officially inaugurated, erstwhile helium preached astir an adulterous pistillate "and however helium spoke from the bosom of the mercy of God."
"Let america commune that helium is inactive enjoying the mercy of the Lord," Leo said.
Books callback Francis' beingness and what helium thought of Prevost
The day was being marked with commemorations successful Rome, including the merchandise of commemorative books astir and recollections of Francis, and a Mass connected Tuesday evening astatine St. Mary Major basilica, wherever Francis' tomb is located.
Among the flurry of recollections, 1 by Salvatore Cernuzio stands retired due to the fact that it offers a presumption of the existent pope from his predecessor.
Cernuzio, an Italian newsman with Vatican Media, the Holy See's in-house quality operation, developed a adjacent idiosyncratic narration with Francis and often traveled successful his entourage erstwhile the pope near the Vatican. However, the book, entitled "Padre," oregon "Father," details the backstage broadside of their relationship, of Cernuzio's visits with Francis astatine the Santa Marta edifice wherever helium lived, and their conversations.
"Him? He's a saint," Francis told Cernuzio of the then-Cardinal Robert Prevost, whom Francis had brought to Rome successful 2023 to instrumentality up the important occupation heading the Vatican's bishop-vetting office.
Francis' assessment, delivered successful 2023 aft helium had announced Prevost would beryllium included successful his caller batch of cardinals that year, adds adjacent much value to the proposal that Francis saw successful Prevost a imaginable successor.
Cernuzio recalls that erstwhile Francis called idiosyncratic a saint, it was usually "to picture radical who are capable to grip conflicts, tensions, and analyzable situations with composure, and who are capable to foster a consciousness of community."
Prevost was spotted and promoted by Francis
The proposal that Francis laid the groundwork for Prevost's predetermination is well-founded, fixed it's wide Francis had his oculus connected Prevost from the commencement and greatly appreciated his acquisition arsenic a missionary who spent 2 decades moving successful Peru.
After Prevost finished a 2nd consecutive stint arsenic caput of the Order of St. Augustine, Francis sent him successful 2014 to beryllium bishop of the analyzable diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, and helium roseate up wrong the Peruvian bishops league from determination to instrumentality connected enactment roles.
Francis past moved Prevost to caput 1 of the astir important Vatican jobs - prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops - that gave Prevost important acquisition successful the Vatican bureaucracy and contacts with the cardinals who would yet take Francis' successor.
The operation made Prevost a viable contender successful a aboriginal papal election, overcoming the different intolerable conclave hurdle of his American citizenship. There had agelong been a taboo successful the religion against a U.S. pope, fixed the geopolitical powerfulness the state already wields.
The 2 men, who aboriginal became bully friends, had known each different from erstwhile Prevost was the Augustinian anterior wide and the erstwhile Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was archbishop of Buenos Aires.
Prevost has recounted that astatine 1 constituent Bergoglio had expressed involvement successful assigning an Augustinian clergyman to a circumstantial occupation successful his archdiocese.
"And I, arsenic anterior general, said 'I understand, Your Eminence, but he's got to bash thing else' and truthful I transferred him determination else," Prevost told parishioners successful his location authorities of Illinois successful 2024.
Prevost said helium "naively" thought the Francis wouldn't retrieve him aft his 2013 predetermination arsenic pope, and that careless "he'll ne'er name maine bishop" owed to the disagreement years earlier.
Bergoglio not lone made him bishop, helium laid the groundwork for Prevost to win him.
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