Pope Francis (2013 — 2025)

Some random thoughts on the passing of Pope Francis….

1. Of course, I predicted he would not last much longer. This is basic medical knowledge. I said he would be gone before the end of the year, that it was unrealistic to pray for a complete turn around, and that we should rather pray for a peaceful and holy death. For this, some people said I was “hateful” and “prideful” and told me to leave the Catholic Church. Come on people! Get real. Everyone dies eventually, even the pope.
2. It is no secret that I thought he was not a good pope. In fact, on many occasions, I said he was a bad pope. That doesn’t mean I think he was a bad person. Rather, it just means I think he wasn’t cut out for the job. Specifics? Sure. Amoris Laetitia, Pachamama and Fiducia Supplicans. These three examples (and there are more but these are the big three), they demonstrate a problem with his leadership. Both through teaching and example, Pope Francis was confusing and lacked clarity. He repeatedly blurred the lines on Church teaching, and this was dangerous. I do not apologize for pointing that out on many occasions, and I hope people understand that I was simply trying to uphold the clarity of Catholic teaching in the wake of the confusion and ambiguity sown by Francis. He pushed doctrinal clarity to the side, and preferred a more empathic approach to the papacy. This endeared him to the hearts of the masses, but it simultaneously scandalized the faith of millions.
3. I never ceased to pray for the repentance and good governance of Pope Francis, and now I pray for the repose of his soul, that God will show him mercy and comfort him.
4. For my non-Catholic friends, this is what will happen next. There will be a viewing of the body, followed by his funeral. Shortly after that, there will be a conclave of cardinals, who will be locked inside the Vatican and will not be able to come out until they have selected a new pope. This new pope can be any Catholic adult man, anywhere in the Church — even a layman like me — but more often than not, they usually choose from among themselves. No communication is allowed between them and the outside world during this process. As a tradition, smoke will rise from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel every time they take a vote. These are from the ballots they cast. If the smoke is black, it means they voted but could not come to a majority. If it’s white, they came to a majority and selected a new pope. Once that happens the bells of St. Peter’s will ring, and the new pope will be presented to the public shortly thereafter.
5. I am hoping and praying for a more conservative and traditional pope — obviously. It’s in God’s hands though, and Francis stacked the college of cardinals before he died. The bad news is, he chose some really horrible (extremely liberal) cardinals for North America and Europe. The good news is, his choices for third-world cardinals were not so bad and more hopeful. They all get to participate, so we’ll see what happens.

Shane Schaetzel is an author of Catholic books and he is an Evangelical convert to the Catholic Church. His articles have been featured on LifeSiteNews, The Remnant Newspaper, Forward in Christ, and Catholic Online. You can read Shane’s books at ShaneSchaetzel.Com