“Faced with the outbreak of so many wars in these years, with inhuman and innumerable horrors dead and destruction”Pope Francis has not ceased to raise his voice imploring peace and inviting wisdom, honest negotiation to find possible solutions, ”said Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the Cardinal College.
The cardinal, in charge of officiating the funeral to 200 thousand people and more than 140 international delegations, cited another of the phrases that Francisco used to pronounce: “Because war is only death of people, destruction of houses, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than before, for all it is always a painful and tragic defeat.”
In his homily I also emphasize that he was a pontiff “among the people”, “with the heart open to all” and that he dedicated “to the last of the earth and marginalized.”
“He established direct contact with people, eager to be there for everyone, with marked attention to those who had difficulties, dedicating themselves to thinking about everything, even in the last inhabitants of the earth and in the marginalized. He was a Pope among the people, with a heart open to all,” re.
“Build bridges and not walls”
The cardinal also recalled one of the most famous phrases of his pontificate: “Build bridges and not walls”a pronounced phrase in the presence of the president of the US, Donald Trump, and numerous world leaders.
At the beginning of his homily Rev, he stated that “his last image, which will remain in our eyes and in our hearts,” is the last Sunday of Resurrection when “despite serious health problems, he wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of the Basilica of San Pedro and then went down to this place to greet from the Papamóvil.”
“Despite his fragility and final suffering, Pope Francis chose to follow this donation path until the last day of his earthly life,” he said.
The Cardinal also highlighted “his characteristic vocabulary and his language rich in images and metaphors” and his “great spontaneity and an informal way to address everyone, even to the people far from the Church”
“His welcoming and listening charisma, together with a way of acting of current sensitivity, has touched hearts, seeking to awaken moral and spiritual energies,” he added.
He also stressed his idea that “the Church is a home for everyone; a house with doors that are always open”, as well as their attention in favor of refugees, displaced and poor.
And in this regard, he cited that it was significant that his first trip went to Lampedusa, “island that is a symbol of the tragedy of emigration with thousands of people drowning in the sea” or also traveling to the Greek island of Lesbos and the celebration of a Mass at the border between Mexico and the United States, on the occasion of their trip to the first of these countries.
Re also recalled “his 47 arduous apostolic trips”, highlighting in particular the one that made Iraq in 2021, which “was a balm for the open wounds of the Iraqi population, which had suffered so much the inhuman work of the Islamic State”, until one of the last ones in 2024 to four nations of Asia-Oceania, where “came to the most peripheral periphery of the world.”
And he concluded remembering that Francisco used to finish his speeches and meetings saying: “Do not forget to pray for me”.
“Dear Pope Francis, now we ask you to rule for us and that from heaven you bless the church, bless Rome, bless the entire world, as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this basilica in a final hug with all the people of God, but ideally also with humanity that seeks the truth with sincere heart and has the torch of hope high,” he finished his homily.