Statement from President McGee on the passing of Pope Francis

Earlier today, Pope Francis passed away in Rome. We at Quincy University join the global Catholic Church in mourning. His was a life richly and fully lived in service to others.

Pope Francis was an example to us all of Christian holiness. He inspired us to do good and to care for one another and for our common home. As our own Bishop Thomas John Paprocki wrote so beautifully earlier today, “Pope Francis showed what it means to be a witness of love.”

We send our condolences to the Holy See; to Pope Francis’ fellow citizens and friends in his native Argentina; and to the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), the religious order the future Pope Francis joined in 1958. I know as well that Franciscans around the world are mourning the loss of Pope Francis, as those working in Franciscan ministries had eagerly adopted him as one of their own. As many of you know, Jorge Bergoglio embraced St. Francis of Assisi as the patron saint of his pontificate, and Pope Francis deeply appreciated the Franciscan charism.

Most Catholics living in the United States never get a firsthand experience of seeing the Holy Father, though Pope Francis did visit the U.S. in 2015. I am deeply grateful that, along with several presidents of other Catholic universities, I was able to attend a general audience with Pope Francis when I was in Rome in 2022. Even when speaking to that large, outdoor crowd on a sweltering day in June, Pope Francis exuded warmth, kindness, and humility.

As a Catholic, Franciscan community, we at Quincy University will celebrate the life and honor the legacy of Pope Francis in the coming days and weeks.

I close with the words of Fr. Lawrence Hayes, OFM, Provincial Minister for Our Lady of Guadalupe Province of the Order of Friars Minor: “In faith, we commend Pope Francis to God’s loving embrace. Through the power of the resurrection, may he now enjoy fullness of life with God in the communion of saints. Abide in life, good and faithful servant!”

Pax et bonum,

Brian McGee

President