Celebrating 10 Years With Pope Francis

The “People’s Pope” marks ten years of service to the Church faithful and to the world.

Photo by Ágatha Depiné on Unsplash.

“Ten years ago, the world’s Catholics welcomed a new pope: His Holiness Pope Francis,” wrote Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi in an op-ed for the National Catholic Reporter on March 15, 2023. “Pope Francis has truly been a pope for the people. A decade after his election, his papacy remains a beacon of peace, light, love and hope — for the global Catholic community and for all.”

“Pope Francis has challenged us to be good stewards of God’s creation and to be a champion of the poor, the worker, the refugee and the immigrant,” Pelosi wrote. “Pope Francis’ commitment to uplifting the least of these shone through during his historic speech to Congress in 2015.”

“In that speech, he addressed a consequential legacy of the Francis stewardship, with his relentless and outspoken voice to save the planet,” Ms. Pelosi recalled poignantly. “In his groundbreaking encyclical, Laudato Si’, Pope Francis described the climate as a common good: belonging to all and meant for all.”

“Writing with crystal clear clarity and urgency, he called on all of us — governments, industries and individuals — to honor our shared responsibility to care for our common home,” Pelosi reminded readers of the National Catholic Reporter.

“At the same time, Pope Francis often reminds us that we must recognize the disproportionate impact of the climate crisis on vulnerable communities — and with our solutions, pay special attention to their needs,” Pelosi wrote.

“In June 2015, a few months before COP15, the United Nations climate summit that generated the Paris Agreement, Pope Francis issued ‘Laudato Si’, his encyclical on the challenges of climate change and threats to our common home,” added Ugandan activist Vanessa Nakate this month. “His intervention undoubtedly contributed to the diplomatic momentum that got the Paris Agreement over the line that year.”

“The common good also includes the earth,” as Pope Francis himself said in his famous 2015 address to Congress. “I call for a courageous and responsible effort to redirect our steps and to avert the most serious effects of the environmental deterioration caused by human activity.”