Global outpouring follows death of Pope Francis: ‘A rare voice of moral clarity’ or ‘a politician’?

The world is mourning Pope Francis, the 88-year-old pontiff whose death on Easter Monday has brought an outpouring of grief and reflection from religious leaders, world activists and laypeople alike.

President Trump gave his condolences on Truth Social: “Rest in Peace Pope Francis! May God Bless him and all who loved him!”

Many are taking to Twitter, expressing deep sorrow for the loss of a pope focused intently on the plight of marginalized people.

“Whatever else, Pope Francis will be remembered for his defiant stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine,” wrote one user, Joe Dwyer, on X. “Despite outside pressure to ‘retract’ or ‘clarify’ his remarks, he stood on the side of humanity against barbarity. ‘This is cruelty, this is not war.’”

Activist Ihab Hassan called him “a rare voice of moral clarity,” citing a statement in which the pope “expressed deep concern over the rise of antisemitism worldwide, while also calling for an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and full humanitarian access to Gaza.”

For many outside the Catholic Church, Francis represented moral courage. 

“Probably the world’s most unproblematic world leader,” wrote one X user, Regine Cabato. “Welcoming to women, LGBTQ, migrants, Palestinians, all the marginalized. He was what the Church needed; a reminder that faith isn’t conservatism but practice and social justice.” 

In a follow-up, she added: “The number of people (esp young people) now saying they returned or stayed Catholic because of Pope Francis — his haters will never get it. The Pope knew that the Church would atrophy if it did not open its doors, that the Church was a living, breathing, even evolving thing.”

Others noted the poignancy of his death falling on Easter Monday, the day Christians commemorate the risen Christ’s appearance to the women at the tomb. 

“To die on an Easter Monday is so poetic, but this one hurts differently,” wrote one X user. “A truly progressive Pope — one who did not hesitate to ask the hard questions and speak on difficult issues. One who did not mince his words, when everyone else was silent. Rest in power, Pope Francis.”

Stephen Watt, a layperson, also praised the pope’s consistent check-ins with the Christian church in Gaza throughout the course of the war, a habit he continued even during his illness.

“When many other churches shamefully turned their back on Palestine, Pope Francis still kept up his daily contact with the Church in Gaza and never failed to keep advocating on their behalf. May he rest in peace and rise in glory,” he wrote on X.

Still, not all responses to the pontiff’s death are admiring. Conservative commentator and evangelical host Bill Mitchell wrote that he’s looking forward to the results of the upcoming conclave, despite his status as an evangelical. 

“Pope Francis has died. I hope the next Pope is less of a hardcore leftist. P.S., As an Evangelical I don’t believe in the Pope as a ‘messenger of God’ – he’s just a politician to me,” he posted.

Within the magisterium, tributes to the late pope are pointing to his deep pastoral sensitivity and global presence as a spiritual shepherd.

“Our Holy Father Pope Francis has died. I would invite everyone to pray for the repose of his soul,” wrote Bishop Robert Barron, head of the Diocese of Winona–Rochester in Minnesota. “He was a man of simplicity, compassion, and deep concern for those on the margins of our society. Let us thank God for the life and ministry of Pope Francis and let us pray for the Cardinals who will soon gather to choose his successor.”