A Man of the People: Hamba Kahle Papa Francisco
Image: Tiziana Fabi / AFP
Pope Francis died and asked to be buried as a simple man. A man of the people. The pope was humorous and funny and loved football - rumoured to be a supporter of San Lorenzo de Almagro FC.
On their website, the club simply said: 'Hasta siempre, Santo Padre!' – with these words, meaning 'Farewell forever, Holy Father,' .
He was a socio - a card carrying member (Member N°88235) el El Ciclón - from his early days as a priest in Buenos Aires. The club's Instagram page waxed poetically about Papa Francisco and it is worth a watch here:
He not only had a common touch, but in life sought to remain in touch with people. It was reported that every night for 18 months the pope would phone the Holy Family Church in Gaza City around 8pm to speak to Father Gabriel Romanelli, the pastor of the besieged Gaza strip's parish. Most calls lasted about 15 minutes as he enquired about the well-being of those sheltered there.
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The last call apparently lasted only 30 seconds and was a quick check in, but it affirmed his direct moral and spiritual support and leadership to Christians, and the embattled people of Gaza. It helped to keep hope alive. He was buried last Saturday.
Pope Francis was the first Jesuit priest to become pope and at birth he was named Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on December 17, 1936.
The book taken from his interview, and written by Hernán Reyes Alcaide, is entitled Hope Never Disappoints: Pilgrims towards a Better World (Nov 24). It was released ahead of the Jubilee Year 2025 with a similar theme, asking us to become pilgrims of hope, as he campaigned against displacement, migration and strife.
An excerpt from La Stampa reads thus: "Something similar has happened in the Middle East, where the open doors of nations such as Jordan or Lebanon continue to be the salvation of millions of people fleeing the conflicts in the area: I am thinking especially of those who leave Gaza in the midst of the famine that has struck their Palestinian brothers and sisters in the face of the difficulty of getting food and aid to their territory."
According to some experts, what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of genocide. It would be necessary to investigate carefully to determine whether it fits within the technical definition formulated by jurists and international bodies.
This echoes the call that South African lawyers made before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023 when the South African government took the bold step of taking the Israeli regime to The Hague.
South Africa filed the papers on 29 December 2023 at the ICJ requesting the court, asking it to declare "on an urgent basis that Israel is in breach of its obligations in terms of the Genocide Convention, should immediately cease all acts and measures in breach of those obligations and take a number of related actions".
When the book was released the number of Palestinians killed by Israel stood at about 43,846 people, most of them civilians, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. The number of those killed today stands at 51,240 Palestinians - mainly civilians. These figures exclude those under the rubble.
History will judge both Pope Francis and South Africa favourably, but in the meantime the haters will continue to fight for space… but we cannot stop now. We have to do more and take our provisional measures placed before the ICJ to the International Criminal Court.
The Pope's love for Palestinians as part of the wretched of the earth is unmatched by today's clergy or leaders of all faiths and doctrines. He symbolised and lived with hope and solidarity and believes as we all must: Hope Never Disappoints.
The pope was inspired by hope and compassion, campaigning against what he defined as the globalisation of indifference, which he said is an ugly disease.
Howard Zinn wrote: "We cannot be neutral on a moving train". We must stand for the poor, the marginalised, the voiceless against those who usurp all the resources like the environment. In his famous encyclical, Pope Laudato si' (2015), Pope Francis' encyclical on ecology, climate change, and care for our common home he educated us on the importance of caring for mother earth, and urged action against global warming, stating that "the Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.".
He railed against global inequality and excessive consumerism, waste and greed. But he never forgot the refugees, the victims of political, military and environmental abuses of power. The pope consistently spoke out against Israel's terrorism and genocide against Palestinians.
The UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) wrote this shattering reminder: At least 100 children are reported killed or injured every day in #Gaza, since the strikes resumed (on 18 March) according to @UNICEF… Young lives cut short in a war not of children's making. Since the war began over a year-and-half ago, 15,000 children have reportedly been killed.
The ceasefire at the beginning of the year gave Gaza's children a chance to survive and be children. The resumption of the war is again robbing them of their childhood. The war has turned Gaza into a 'no land' for children. This is a stain on our common humanity.
To end, on 24 December 2024, I co-wrote a poem with Pope Francis (he did not know it)...
*WALKING IN GAZAN SHOES*
With pain
I think of Gaza
So much pain
I think of Gaza
I think of the children
Machine gunned in gaza
With pain
I think of Gaza
Of the bombings
The bombings of schools and hospitals
Oh Gaza
What cruelty in Gaza
Gaza
So much cruelty
Yesterday children
Children were bombed(again) in Gaza
Bombed in Gaza
Bombed
This is not war
This is cruelty
The pain of Gaza
Touches deep into my heart
Hassl (and Pope Francis, Christmas eve 2024)
* Hassen Lorgat is a social justice activist who has worked in trade union and anti apartheid sports movements
** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.
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