More than 1,000 faithful gather at Holy Name Cathedral to honor Pope Francis
More than 1,000 people gathered at Holy Name Cathedral on the Near North Side Wednesday morning to pay respects to Pope Francis.
The Archdiocese of Chicago held a memorial Mass to commemorate the life of the pontiff who was known as the “good shepherd" and the “people’s pope.” Pope Francis died the day after after Easter Sunday at the age of 88.
Cardinal Blase Cupich’s message in his homily made clear that his and the church’s responsibility in the wake of the pope’s death is to listen to one another in and outside of the Catholic church.
“We must be in touch with the lived experience of people’s everyday life,” Cupich said. “This means that the pastoral theology of our church is on an equal footing with all the other branches of theology, dogma, Scriptures, that is moral theology, ecclesiology, theurgical and spiritual theology.”
Sister Katie Mitchell of Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration attended the memorial and said Pope Francis had been her hero for years and she is grateful for what he gave to the world as pontiff.
Her ministry works with refugees, and she said he was prophetic to many because of the way he cared for people. She admired that he wasn’t afraid to speak up about refugees, migrants and those facing war.
“It was his way of reaching out to the vulnerable and calling on the church and all society to see the people who are sometimes on the outside,” she said. “He's been a voice for the voiceless.”
During his homily, the cardinal said both individuals and the church must follow in the footsteps of the pope. To Mitchell, that means being connected to communities outside the Catholic church.
“Like the cardinal said today about being insular and says as a church, we need to look outward, to look to the people who are suffering, to look for our brothers and sisters who are on the margins,” Mitchell said.
The archdiocese invited several leaders of different faiths to attend and sit near the altar. Many said part of Pope Francis’ wish for the church was for it to have a strong relationship with other religions.
David Inlander, past chair of the Interreligious Affairs Commission and member of the American Jewish Committee, said the invitation to have different faiths in attendance was reflective of how the pope valued bringing religions together.
“He had sincerely embraced the teachings of the Second Vatican Council, where all faiths are valued and his work to attempt to repair the world for all was so meaningful,” Inlander said. “I can tell you to Jews, his frequent outspoken statements against antisemitism in particular is meaningful to us.”
The Rev. Patti Nakai of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago said many Buddhists admired Pope Francis’ concern for the environment and keeping a dialogue with other religions.
“He just said let's work together; we don't have to sit and argue about theology. If our religions all have a concern for our community, let's work together,” Nakai said. “We just appreciate all that he did, and we're hoping that the next one will be just as forward-looking and community-driven.”
Cupich will be traveling to Rome this week to take part in selecting the next pope.
This is the first time he will participate in this process after being elevated to the role of cardinal of the Archdiocese of Chicago in 2016 by Pope Francis.
Speaking to reporters after the Mass, Cupich echoed what he said in his homily — that church members must listen to one another to make the right decision.
“I think that it is a shared responsibility. It’s not in isolation. We all have a part to play, and that’s why we have to listen to each other; we don’t do this alone,” Cupich said.