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Pope Francis embraces a young woman during his general audience in the Paul VI hall at the Vatican Feb. 9, 2022. Pope Francis, formerly Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, died April 21, 2025, at age 88.
CNS photo/Paul Haring
April 21, 2026
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OSV News photo/Mario Tomassetti, Vatican Media/Jean-Matthieu Gautier, KNA via CPP
ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE
Flying over the west coast of central Africa on April 21, Pope Leo XIV paused to honour his predecessor on the first anniversary of Pope Francis' death, remembering the Argentine pope’s witness to mercy and closeness to the poor.
On the papal flight from Luanda, Angola, to Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea, Pope Leo XIV reflected on the legacy of Pope Francis, who died April 21, 2025.
"I would like to remember, on this first anniversary of his death, Pope Francis, who gave so much to the Church with his life, his testimony, his words and his gestures," Pope Leo told reporters, speaking in Italian.
He recalled how Pope Francis truly lived with "closeness to the poorest, the little ones, the sick, the children, the elderly."
"We can also remember his message of mercy," Pope Leo said, remembering in particular how his predecessor invited the entire Church to join in the "beautiful celebration of an extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy."
Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio on Dec. 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, led the Catholic Church from March 13, 2013, until his death on Easter Monday 2025. He was the first Jesuit pope and the first pope from Latin America.
The late pope's final public appearance was on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025, when he unexpectedly came out on the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica, raising his hands to wave to thousands of faithful gathered below in the square.
"Happy Easter," he told the crowd, before delivering what would be his last Easter blessing, "urbi et orbi," to the city and the world. The visibly frail pope then boarded his popemobile for a final pass through the square to greet the faithful.
"We pray that he is already enjoying the mercy of the Lord and we thank the Lord for the great gift of Francis' life to the whole Church and to the whole world," Pope Leo said on the flight.
In Rome, the anniversary of Pope Francis' death was marked with a Mass held in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, the final resting place of the late pope.
Pope Leo reflected on this predecessor's legacy on the papal flight to Equatorial Guinea, the last African country on his 11-day apostolic journey to the continent.
(Courtney Mares is Vatican Editor for OSV News. Follow her on X @catholicourtney.)
A version of this story appeared in the April 26, 2026, issue of The Catholic Registerwith the headline "Pope recalls Francis’ closeness to ‘little ones’".
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