A pope of firsts, Francis was an outspoken champion of the deprived – but left some feeling betrayed

Published

3 months ago

April 21, 2025

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His arrival as pontiff heralded a new kind of leadership for the Catholic Church.

Described by some as the people’s pope, Pope Francis showed a willingness to welcome those who’d felt shunned by the Catholic faith, but as a reformer at heart, he also faced huge criticism from conservatives within the church.

The clash between the traditional and the liberal remains the greatest challenge to the legacy he leaves.

He was a pope of firsts: the first Latin American pontiff, the first Jesuit pope, the first to choose the name Francis.

Selected in just over a day by the papal conclave in March 2013, for some, the archbishop from Argentina, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was an unexpected choice.

Follow latest: Vatican pays tribute to a life ‘dedicated to service’
Read more: Pope Francis dies, Vatican says

The cardinals who chose him said he accepted the post with his trademark good humour.

“When the secretary of state toasted to him, he toasted back to us and said ‘I hope God forgives you’,” Cardinal Timothy M Dolan recalled at the time.

That sense of humour and his humility were characteristics which set him apart. He chose not to wear the more ostentatious papal clothing and turned down the traditional Vatican apartments for a more modest residence.

“Francis was not shy at all. He would always say funny things – crack a joke. He would also risk saying things that people in the first moment would be feeling as an insult, but then, when they looked at his cheeky face, they would also laugh,” remembered Professor Felix Koerner SJ, a theologian at Humboldt University in Berlin.

Born and raised in Buenos Aires, the son of Italian immigrants, after school he studied to become a scientist before being drawn to religion.

Spiritual leader to 1.4 billion Catholics, he was a symbolic figurehead on the world stage, meeting monarchs, presidents and prime ministers as he travelled the globe addressing huge crowds everywhere he went.

But while at ease in the presence of the rich and powerful, Pope Francis was never more comfortable than in the company of the poor.

His papal name was selected in honour of St Francis of Assisi for this very reason.

“Cardinal Bergoglio had a special place in his heart and his ministry for the poor, for the disenfranchised, for those living on the fringes and facing injustice,” Vatican deputy spokesman Thomas Rosica explained.

Throughout his papacy, he was an outspoken champion of the deprived and a defender of those fleeing war and hunger.

Addressing the US Congress in 2015 he said: “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you, this rule points us in a clear direction; let us treat others with the same passion and compassion with which we want to be treated. Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we seek for ourselves.”

On his numerous foreign trips, he sought out those in need, not afraid to visit struggling or violent areas.

In 2016, he washed the feet of refugees from various religious backgrounds at a migrant centre in a “gesture of humility and service”.

From climate change to the balance of wealth in the world, Pope Francis was not afraid to make his views known.

In 2015, he wrote Laudato Si (Praised Be), a major document on the need to protect the environment, calling the climate crisis a moral issue.

Addressing a congregation in 2023, he said: “We must side with the victims of environmental and climate injustice, working to put an end to the senseless war against our common home.”

He was widely praised for his commitment to interfaith dialogue and was instrumental in an agreement between the Catholic Church and Islamic faiths.

In February 2019, Pope Francis and Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, signed the Document On Human Fraternity For World Peace And Living Together.

He was also the first ever pope to travel to Iraq in 2021, an attempt to build bridges between different communities.

But it was his acceptance of the LGBTQ community that was unprecedented.

It began with an unexpected remark to reporters on a flight back from Brazil about gay clergy.

He said: “If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge them?”

He later declared homosexuality was not a crime, part of his mission to make the Catholic Church more welcoming.

“He was great in building relations and in risking being provocative to people. So he will remain in our memories a pope challenging people to live like Christ in simplicity,” said Professor Koerner.

However, events in later years left some feeling betrayed, for example, a landmark declaration allowing clerical blessings for same-sex couples was diluted.

In April 2024, he appeared to reiterate the Vatican‘s staunch opposition to gender reassignment, surrogacy, abortion and euthanasia, by signing the text “Dignitas Infinita” (Infinite Dignity).

In the same year, his own liberal credentials were questioned after reports he used a homophobic slur behind closed doors.

But despite that, others continued to insist he was still going too far with his progressive social views, and steering the Catholic Church away from more traditional values.

For the first time in six centuries, Francis had taken over from a living pope when Pope Benedict XVI stepped down due to his health in 2013.

His new tone compared to his predecessor, and efforts to reform, would set him on a collision course with his critics for going too far on both finances and policy.

Some would argue the opposition severely hampered his ability to go further with reforms around the involvement of women and the gay community.

Ruth Gledhill, assistant editor of The Tablet, said Pope Francis “did go to war with the conservative traditionalist side of the church. And it could be argued that it wasn’t entirely an effective battle or entirely a wise battle in some respects.

“I think what people will have to accept is even now in today’s world where everything happens so quickly, in the Catholic Church still, nothing happens fast.”

Claims of abuse within the church both in the past and present were a constant shadow for Pope Francis.

In 2018, he travelled to Ireland and apologised for the “crimes” committed by the church.

The victims included the tens of thousands of Irish children sexually and physically abused at Catholic churches, schools and workhouses, and the women who were forced to live and work in laundries and give up their children if they got pregnant out of wedlock.

“We ask forgiveness for those members of the hierarchy who didn’t take responsibility for this painful situation, and who kept silence,” Francis said to a crowd of 300,000 in Dublin.

“May the Lord keep this state of shame and compunction and give us strength so this never happens again, and that there is justice.”

In 2019, he issued a landmark decree making it obligatory for all priests and members of religious orders to report any suspicions of abuse, and holding bishops directly accountable for any attacks they commit or cover-up.

In 2023, he extended the sex abuse rules to include lay leaders.

But some still feel not enough was done to root out the problem and hold to account known abusers.

Luke Coppen, senior correspondent at the Catholic website The Pillar, said: “Opinions differ about how successful he was or how much attention he paid to it. He certainly took several steps to combat that evil on a global scale. But critics again said that he didn’t do enough.”

Occasionally, during his time as pontiff, his temper frayed when he was in pain from illness or overwhelmed by an overexcited crowd.

In 2016, he scolded a person who pulled him down in Mexico, and in 2020 slapped the hand of a woman who refused to let go of his arm.

For many this only made him more human.

At the time of his election, he also faced questions over whether he stayed silent about human rights abuses carried out by Argentina’s dictatorship while he lived there.

Critics alleged he failed to protect priests who challenged the junta earlier in his career, during the ‘dirty war’ between 1976 and 1983, and that he has said too little about the complicity of the church during military rule.

The Vatican strongly denied the accusations.

In his final years, increasing health issues meant more frequent hospital stays and more events cancelled, but even when sick, Francis continued to put others before himself to show the church was more open than before.

For example, while receiving treatment in hospital in 2023 he took time to visit ill children, baptise a baby and comfort mourning parents.

In 2024, he also invited 200 comedians to an audience at the Vatican and a year later appointed the first woman, Sister Simona Brambilla, to head up a major Vatican office.

In 2025, Pope Francis underwent a prolonged stay in hospital after being admitted on 14 February for respiratory issues that developed into double pneumonia.

He spent 38 days there – the longest hospitalisation of his 12-year papacy.

But he emerged on Easter Sunday, his last public appearance a day before his death, to bless thousands in St Peter’s Square after meeting with US vice president JD Vance.

Announcing his death on Easter Monday, Cardinal Farrell of the Vatican said: “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis.

“At 7.35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and His Church.

“He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalised.

“With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God.”

Bells tolled in church towers across Rome after the announcement of his passing.

As Catholics now mourn his passing, it is his humanity that Pope Francis will be remembered for; a pope of the people, never happier than when he was among them.

World

Hamas responds to disarmament reports as health officials say 18 killed in Israeli fire – including people trying to access food

Published

6 hours ago

August 2, 2025

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Hamas responds to disarmament reports as health officials say 18 killed in Israeli fire - including people trying to access food

Hamas has said it will not disarm unless an independent Palestinian state is established with Jerusalem as its capital.

The militant group said it was issuing a statement “in response to media reports quoting US envoy Steve Witkoff, claiming [Hamas] has shown willingness to disarm”.

It continued: “We reaffirm that resistance and its arms are a legitimate national and legal right as long as the occupation continues.

“This right is recognised by international laws and norms, and it cannot be relinquished except through the full restoration of our national rights – first and foremost, the establishment of an independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.”

Hamas also condemned Mr Witkoff’s visit to an aid distribution centre in Gaza on Friday as “nothing more than a premeditated staged show”.

Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Mr Witkoff and Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, visited a centre run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

Hamas said the trip was “designed to mislead public opinion, polish the image of the occupation, and provide it with political cover for its starvation campaign and continued systematic killing of defenceless children and civilians in the Gaza Strip”.

Mr Witkoff said he spent “over five hours in Gaza”. In a post on X on Friday, he said: “The purpose of the visit was to give [President Trump] a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza.”

Elidalis Burges, a critical care nurse in Gaza, told Sky News she saw the US visit as a “PR stunt” and that the American officials were “just being shown a small portion of what is actually happening”.

“I think the visit to the GHF site was just a controlled visit dictated by the Israeli military,” she said. “If they really wanted people to see what is happening here, they would allow international journalists from around the world to enter.

“They would allow the leaders of the world to come here and see.”

Hamas releases hostage video

It comes as Hamas released a video showing Israeli man, Evyatar David, being held hostage in what appears to be a tunnel.

Mr David was taken from the Nova Music Festival on 7 October 2023.

His family have given permission for media outlets to show the video.

More than a dozen killed by Israeli fire

Gaza health officials have said 18 people, including eight who were trying to access food, were killed by Israeli fire on Saturday.

Witness Yahia Youssef told Reuters news agency he helped carry three people wounded by gunshots and saw others lying on the ground near a food distribution centre.

In response to questions about several eyewitness accounts of violence at one of its facilities, GHF said “nothing [happened] at or near our sites”.

The US and Israel-backed GHF has been marred by controversy and fatal shootings ever since it was set up earlier this year.

According to the United Nations’ human rights office, at least 859 people have been killed “in the vicinity” of GHF aid sites since late May.

Dr Tom Adamkiewicz, who is working at a hospital in Gaza, has said Palestinian children, women and men are “being shot at, basically like rabbits”.

It is a “level of barbarity I don’t think the world has seen”, he told Sky News.

The Israel Defence Forces has repeatedly said it “categorically rejects the claims of intentional harm to civilians” and has blamed Hamas militants for fomenting chaos and endangering civilians.

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in an attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and abducted 251 others. Of those, they still hold around 50, with 20 believed to be alive, after most of the others were released in ceasefires or other deals.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between militants and civilians in its count.

World

North Korea’s opened its doors to Russian tourists. So… how was their holiday?

Published

6 hours ago

August 2, 2025

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North Korea's opened its doors to Russian tourists. So... how was their holiday?

The world’s most secretive state is a mystery for billions of people – but not Anastasiya Samsonova.

She has returned from a week’s holiday in North Korea.

“We saw nothing terrible there, there is no danger there,” the 33-year-old HR manager tells me.

“Frankly speaking, we really liked it.”

She was part of a group of 15 Russian tourists who were the first foreign visitors to a new seaside resort, which was opened to great fanfare by North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un in June.

Her holiday snaps show a white sand beach, shimmering seas and high-rise hotels. But something’s missing – people.

There are rows of sun loungers, but not a soul sitting on them. A glittering banquet hall that’s devoid of diners.

That’s because, when it comes to international tourists, the Wonsan-Kalma resort is currently only open to Russians.

“The hotel was absolutely new,” Anastasiya enthuses, unfussed by the absence of others.

“Everything was done very beautifully, a good interior … very developed infrastructure.”

But why not Turkey? Or Thailand?

I gently suggest that people in Britain might be shocked at the idea of a summer break in a country better known for famines and forced labour than parasols and pina coladas.

“We were interested in seeing how people live there,” Anastasiya explains.

“There were a lot of prejudices about what you can and can’t do in North Korea, how you can behave. But actually, we felt absolutely free.”

Anastasiya is one of a growing number of Russians who are choosing to visit their reclusive neighbour as the two allies continue to forge closer ties following the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Last year, North Korean troops supplied military support in Russia’s Kursk region, and now there is economic cooperation too.

North Korean produce, including apples and beer, has started appearing on supermarket shelves in Russia’s far east.

And last month, Moscow launched direct passenger flights to Pyongyang for the first time in decades.

But can this hermit nation really become a holiday hotspot?

The Moscow office of the Vostok Intur travel agency believes so. The company runs twice-weekly tours there, and I’m being given the hard sell.

“North Korea is an amazing country, unlike any other in the world,” director Irina Kobeleva gushes, before listing some unusual highlights.

“It is a country where you will not see any advertising on the streets. And it is very clean – even the asphalt is washed.”

She shows me the brochures, which present a glossy paradise. There are images of towering monuments, pristine golf greens and immaculate ski slopes. But again, no people.

Ms Kobeleva insists the company’s tours are increasingly popular, with 400 bookings a month.

“Our tourists are mostly older people who want to return to the USSR,” she says, “because there is a feeling that the real North Korea is very similar to what was once in the Soviet Union.

“But at the same time, there is a huge growing demand among young people.”

Sure enough, while we’re chatting, two customers walk in to book trips. The first is Pavel, a young blogger who likes to “collect” countries. North Korea will be number 89.

“The country has opened its doors to us, so I’m taking this chance,” he tells me when I ask why he wants to go.

For pensioner Tatiana, the reason is sentimental.

“My husband wanted to go there, but now he’s gone. So I want his wish to come true,” she says.

It’ll certainly cost them. One week’s trip that takes in Pyongyang, a circus and the new beach resort, costs roughly £1,500 without flights.

At that price, I suspect most tourists will be content for this secretive state to remain hidden.

World

US manhunt for ‘dangerous’ murder suspect who dropped off baby after four relatives found dead

Published

6 hours ago

August 2, 2025

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US manhunt for 'dangerous' murder suspect who dropped off baby after four relatives found dead

A car has been found during the search for a man suspected of killing the parents, grandmother and uncle of a baby girl found abandoned in a US state.

Austin Robert Drummond, 28, is suspected of having murdered four relatives in Tennessee – James M Wilson, 21, Adrianna Williams, 20, Cortney Rose, 38, and Braydon Williams, 15, who were identified on Wednesday.

Mr Wilson and Adrianna Williams were the parents of the infant found alive in a car seat in a front yard on Tuesday afternoon.

Police say Drummond then dropped off the baby and made people aware of the child, in an act of “compassion”.

However, officers added Drummond remains on the run and should be considered “armed and dangerous”.

Ms Rose was Adrianna and Braydon Williams’ mother, according to District Attorney Danny Goodman.

No details have been given on how they were murdered.

Drummond dropped off the seven-month-old infant and brought attention to people nearby to come get the child, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch said during a news conference.

The baby is safe and being cared for, according to Stephen Sutton, a spokesperson for the Lake and Dyer county sheriffs.

“While this was an extremely tragic and violent event… there was a sign of compassion, if you will,” Mr Rausch said.

“That tells us that there’s a possibility that Austin may have a sense that there is hope for him to be able to come in and have a conversation about what happened.”

Mr Rausch said he believes it was a targeted attack by Drummond, who had a relationship with the victims and their family.

A relative of the victims posted on Facebook after the deaths, saying the suspect has “literally been nothing short of amazing to us and our kids”, according to our US partner network NBC News. “We all trusted him,” the relative added.

The unoccupied car that police said Drummond had been driving was found on Friday in Jackson, Tennessee, about 70 miles from where the bodies were found and some 40 miles from where the baby was left in a car seat in a front yard.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has said it obtained warrants for Drummond. He is wanted on four counts of first-degree murder, one count of aggravated kidnapping, and weapons offences.

Authorities offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.

Drummond was convicted of one count of aggravated robbery in August 2014, according to public records. His sentence ended in September 2024, according to Tennessee Department of Correction records.

He was charged criminally for activities inside the prison, including attempted murder, after he completed the sentence that put him behind bars, District Attorney Mr Goodman said.

Drummond was out on bond on the other charges at the time of the killings, he added.

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A pope of firsts, Francis was an outspoken champion of the deprived – but left some feeling betrayed

A pope of firsts, Francis was an outspoken champion of the deprived – but left some feeling betrayed

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Hamas responds to disarmament reports as health officials say 18 killed in Israeli fire – including people trying to access food

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A pope of firsts, Francis was an outspoken champion of the deprived – but left some feeling betrayed

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