A Requiem Mass for Pope Francis was celebrated in Brentwood Cathedral on the day after his funeral in Rome.
In his homily, chief celebrant Bishop Alan said: “Today we unite ourselves with Catholics, Christians and people of good will throughout the world to pray for Pope Francis.” He said the Pope would always end every meeting by saying ‘Pray for me’.
Bishop Alan talked about his encounters with Pope Francis at three World Youth Days and in the Vatican itself. He said the Pope was a man of immense approachability, friendliness and great humanity, who possessed the remarkable quality of being able to talk to individuals and to very large audiences. “At World Youth Day in Lisbon, he spoke to 1.3 million young people, who then took part in a long period of adoration.”
In meetings, Pope Francis would say: “Say anything you like in here. Out there it might be considered sinful to speak against the Pope but here you can say anything.” The Pope was laidback and full of humour, Bishop Alan added, and would typically put aside his meeting notes and speak from the heart.
“Just as Jesus focused on the person in front of him, there was something of that in Pope Francis. The only person who mattered was the one he was speaking to, whether in great crowds or singly. It is wonderful that he managed a last circuit of the people on St Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday.”
Summing up, Bishop Alan invited everyone to pray for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis – and also to pray for his successor. “Francis’ great generosity of heart would have meant that he himself had such a prayer in his mind. He would have been praying for the next Pope. So we too look to the Holy Spirit and pray for the next pontiff, whoever that may be. And we pray for Pope Francis. Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord and may perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace, Amen.”
Bishop Alan's homily
Requiem Mass images
