On April 21, Pope Francis died at the age of 88 at his residence in the Vatican. In an interview with the Daily Lobo, the Archbishop of Santa Fe John C. Wester described the Pope as a humble, kind and gentle man who put people at ease.
“I think Pope Francis brought the virtue of compassion and mercy to the forefront of his ministry,” Wester said. “I think people picked up on that: Catholics and non-Catholics alike, worldwide and in New Mexico. He was a parish priest, and he looked upon the world and the whole Catholic Church as his parish.”
Francis’ motto throughout his papacy was “A merciful God has called me,” which was a message he lived by, Wester said.
“He had a humility that allowed him to know that he was a sinner and know that he was forgiven, and through God's grace, he could be enriched,” Wester said. “I think that's the message he gave everybody: that God is a merciful God, the church is a merciful church, and that the church is here. Jesus is here. The church is here to support people, to encourage people.”
Wester believes the pope was very cognizant of the suffering happening throughout the world and aware of the purpose of his position, often reaching out to immigrants and people on the peripheries — including people in the LGBTQ+ community and those who are persecuted, he said.
Francis often called the priests at the Catholic parish in Gaza because he knew that they were suffering, while at the same time, he was saddened by the attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Wester said.
Francis called the congregation of a Roman Catholic church in Gaza every night and prayed for them, according to NPR.
Wester feels that Francis was important to Catholic New Mexicans because he spoke Spanish and had family-oriented values, he said. The pope brought compassion to the forefront, a value embedded in New Mexico’s culture, according to Wester.
Wester met Francis on June 29, 2015, after Wester was installed as the twelfth archbishop of Santa Fe, according to the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.
“Pope Francis was an attentive listener, very honest and had a good sense of humor,” Wester said.
Wester and other bishops from the Southwest were invited to sit with Francis during mass in Rome. They talked to the pope afterward, Wester said.
“He was very sincere and genuine,” Wester said. “He always said that bishops are called to teach, but a teacher has to listen first. And he did that. He was genuinely interested in what you had to say. And then he would be very honest. He wouldn't beat around the bush.”
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Francis inspired Wester to be a pastor rather than an administrator, which Wester said is a large part of being an archbishop.
“I think Francis encouraged me to be more of a people bishop, to be more out there, to delegate the administrative duties more to my staff so I can be with the people,” Wester said. “So I rebuilt my church initiative to focus on working with the priests and the people on rebuilding the Archdiocese.”
Francis also encouraged Wester to listen more to people before making up his mind on an issue, which he said can be a pitfall for a bishop, Wester said.
“The pope taught me that sometimes it's important to be able to deal with confrontation, with difficulty,” Wester said. “You have to sometimes suffer, but the suffering always leads to Easter Sunday. Those are some of the things that the pope taught me.”
Wester hopes Francis’ successor will follow the John Henry Newman doctrine of development, which encourages the church to respond to new challenges, Wester said.
“I hope that he continues to stand against what I'm seeing — this is from my point of view now — but to stand against the authoritarianism that we're seeing in the global geopolitical world today,” Wester said. “You look at President Putin and President Trump, and President Xi Jinping.”
Francis spoke about what he referred to as unbridled capitalism, and his concerns about these financial systems going unchecked if there isn’t a sense of dignity for the worker, Wester said.
“It's kind of risky to say that, because there are a lot of rich people in the world who don't like to hear that,” Wester said. “But nonetheless, it's part of the Gospel, so I hope that the new Pope will continue the tradition of pope Francis in that regard.”
Francis’ funeral was held on Saturday, April 26. A papal conclave will soon elect the man — women cannot be ordained priests in the Catholic Church — who will become the next pope, according to CBS.
“I'm hoping Pope Francis’ successor will be a good listener, as Francis was, and take what he hears to prayer and be willing to follow the Holy Spirit, even if it means taking a risk,” Wester said.
Maria Fernandez is a beat reporter and photographer for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on X @dailylobo
