Dear brothers and sisters of the Shalom Community and Work,
In this time, our hearts are filled with a mixture of pain and gratitude at the passing of our beloved Pope Francis.
We were surprised on the morning of Easter Monday with the news of his departure to the Father’s House. And what springs up in us, above all, is great praise to God for the gift that Pope Francis has been in the life, history, and mission of the Catholic Shalom Community. Yes, the death of the Holy Father generates in us a reverent silence, but at the same time a deep recognition for who he was, for the good he did for us, and for the grace of having walked with the Church under his shepherding in such a decisive and fruitful time. A Pope who was a friend of the Merciful God, a friend of the poor, a friend of the young, and I can say with all my heart: our friend, a friend of the Catholic Shalom Community.
Pope Francis, throughout his more than twelve years of pontificate, welcomed us many times with special paternal affection. He always received us with a look of closeness, of listening, and of trust. He accompanied the mission of the Community with affection and attention. And there were many signs of this friendship that he gave us.
We, who had our vocation and our Charism generated “at the feet of Peter,” always saw in our relationship with the Holy Father something that goes far beyond something purely institutional or formal. Love, fidelity, and communion with the Successor of Peter are part of our identity. And with Pope Francis, this feature of our Charism became even more visible, even more concrete and tangible, full of ‘filial affection’. We truly loved him, and we know we were also deeply loved by him as a father, as a shepherd, and as a true friend and brother.
We can say, yes, that he was “the Pope of Mercy” — and how much that speaks to our hearts, we who live from the fundamental experience with the Risen Christ who went through the Cross, who, without giving up on his own, placed himself among those who had abandoned him during the Passion, showed them the glorious wounds — the victory of forgiveness over sin and death — and offered them His Shalom, His Peace. That Love that never gives up on anyone! Our dear Pope Francis taught us to be, even more, a “Church that goes forth,” that reaches out to the wounded heart of humanity; a Church that does not close in on itself, but offers itself as a paschal gift to the world. That’s how he lived until the end. That’s also how he left: ‘in a state of going forth’.
On Easter Sunday, he went to St. Peter’s Square, from where he gave us the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing and wished us, with the sacrifice of great physical effort, but also with his usual tenderness and firmness, a “Happy Easter”. And as he always did, he wanted to be, literally, among the people, a shepherd always among the sheep. He lived ‘in a state of going forth’ and departed as he lived: offering himself.
Francis taught us mercy through gestures and words. He turned the “Church that goes forth” into a living appeal for all of us, embodied in his way of being and acting as a shepherd.
The Pope who radiated the “Joy of the Gospel” and revealed to us, with simplicity and courage, the tender face of God. The one who brought closer those who were “on the existential peripheries,” placing them at the center — because that is exactly how the heart of God loves.
The Pope who invited us to “rejoice and be glad” — Gaudete et exsultate — because we are called to holiness, “the most beautiful face of the Church” (GE, §9), and who, with his words and gestures, helped us keep our eyes fixed on Heaven, our goal, throughout his entire pontificate!
The profoundly Marian traits of Pope Francis’ heart, life, and mission were always evident. We were always touched by the fact that, at the beginning and end of each apostolic journey, he made a point of visiting the image of Mary Salus Populi Romani, in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major. It was there, beside the Virgin, that he expressed the desire that his “final earthly journey” would also end — asking to be buried very close to the image of the Most Holy Mary.
Addressing young people, he once said: “Mary was the young woman with a heart that was available and open.” The great openness of the Holy Father to the action of the Holy Spirit and his readiness to always “set out in haste” on mission are clear reflections of the impact that the ‘young Mary’ had on his life and ministry.
We love you, Pope Francis. The Risen One who passed through the Cross, who conquered death and opened the Gates of Heaven for us, now calls you to participate in the Glory of the Heavenly Jerusalem! We always prayed for you. But today, we are the ones who, with humility and confidence, ask you: intercede for us from the House of the Merciful God! For the Church, for the Community, for the poor, for those who suffer, for the young, for those who are far away. Tireless as you always were among us, we believe you will continue loving, serving, and evangelizing with joy — now, from Heaven.
Dear brothers, let us remain united in prayer. Let us pray in communion with the whole Church, with all humanity that today mourns this great loss. Let us take the Holy Rosary into our hands. Let us place before Jesus in the Eucharist and before the Most Holy Mary our pain and our gratitude. And let us say together: thank you, Lord, for Pope Francis. Thank you for every word, for every gesture, for every smile, for every time he pointed us to Your Holy Will.
I am in Rome, bringing in my heart and in prayer our entire Community, as a sign of our love and gratitude to the Holy Father. When, in my youth, I had the grace of offering my life at the feet of Saint John Paul II, it was not a purely personal act, but represented all the people God was raising up in the Shalom Charism. So now, too: I am in Rome representing the entire Shalom Community, to say: Thank you very much for everything, dear Pope Francis!
We will continue in a permanent state of mission, as he taught us, as children of the Church, with our eyes fixed on Heaven. Because Christ is risen! Alleluia! Yes, truly risen! Alleluia!
With love and hope,
Moysés Louro de Azevedo Filho
