UPDATE

Pope Francis dies at the age of 88

Newsroom, 21.04.2025, 14:56

POPE According to the Vatican, Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman-Catholic Church has died ending an often turbulent reign marked by division and tension as he was trying to overhaul the institution, Reuters reports. The 88 years old Pope was suffering from various illnesses during his service of 12 years. His last public appearance was on Easter Sunday when he offered a blessing to tens of thousands in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born in Argentina and is the first Pope from Latin America. Shortly after getting elected Pontiff at the age of 76 he started to implement a series of changes in the Catholic Church. He reorganized the Vatican’s bureaucratic system, wrote four major didactic documents, travelled to over 65 countries and canonized over 900 saints. He has been recognized for his attempts to bring the sober Catholic Church in line with the realities of the present day world. Among his major decisions was that he allowed priests to grant blessings to same-sex couples according to each case and for the first time he appointed women in leading positions at the Vatican. He staged five major synods of the Catholic bishops from all over the world for talks over ordaining women and changing the church’s teachings on sexual issues. The nine days of mourning, during which the Pope’s body will be on display at the St. Peter’s Basilica, are to be followed by the funeral. In his testament the Pope asked not to be buried in St. Peter’s, where over 100 Popes are buried, but in Santa Maria Magiore in Rome. After his burial, cardinals under the age of 80 are to convene for a conclave aimed at electing the new Pope.

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