Diocese of Oakland honors “Pope of Mercy”

One of Pope Francis’ first official acts after being elected to the papacy in 2013 was to name a new bishop of Oakland, his Jesuit brother Michael C. Barber. Bishop Barber honored the late pontiff with a memorial Mass on April 26, hours after Pope Francis was laid to rest at St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome.  

“When Pope Francis met with groups of bishops when we went to Rome, when he met with visitors and groups, when he spoke from the window of the apostolic palace to the whole world, he would always say at the end, ‘Please pray for me.’ In response to his request, we are here tonight to pray for his soul and to commend his soul to the love and mercy of Almighty God,” Bishop Barber said at the beginning of Mass. 

In his homily, Bishop Barber highlighted Pope Francis’ mercy and devotion to Mary. “Mercy is defined with love encountering suffering. Pope Francis showed mercy to the world and to the Church and to everybody,” he said, also stating his belief that Pope Francis will be remembered as the Pope of Mercy.  

He spoke of his own efforts within the diocese to emulate the pope’s acts of mercy toward migrants and inmates. “In 2015, I was standing in St. Peter’s Square and heard the Holy Father ask each parish, convent and monastery in Europe to host a refugee family. I thought it shouldn’t be just a call to Europe. When I came home, I repeated the Holy Father’s call here in the Diocese of Oakland and a good number of our parishes stepped up to rent and furnish apartments and welcome and sponsor refugee families, many of them practicing Muslims,” Bishop Barber recalled. 

With respect to inmates, he said, “On his first Holy Thursday, the pope went to a prison and washed and kissed the feet of inmates. He did that on more than one Holy Thursday. We’ve imitated that here in our diocese. Last week, I went to Santa Rita County Jail to have Mass on Holy Thursday to wash inmates’ feet. The pope’s last visit to a prison was just last Holy Thursday when he was no longer able to celebrate Mass or wash feet but he wanted to go anyway to say hello and bless the inmates.” 
Bishop Michael C. Barber, SJ bows in prayer during the April 26 memorial Mass for Pope Francis at The Cathedral of Christ the Light. 
Photos courtesy of Br. Chris Garcia, OFM.
Bishop Barber recounted with a chuckle a visit he made to Rome when he put in his name as a visiting bishop to attend the pope’s early morning Mass. His request could not be accommodated because Pope Francis was having a special Mass for janitors. “And I thought, ‘Better them than me.’ The last shall be first, right? Whoever had a special event for janitors? The next week, he had a special Mass for the street sweepers of Rome, people that are often overlooked.” 
The Blessed Mother was special to Pope Francis, especially an icon called Salus Popoli Romani, Mary Health of the Roman people, in a side chapel of St. Mary Major, Pope Francis’ final resting place. “Pope Francis went to visit Our Lady there on the first day of his papacy, and in the 12 years he was pope, he visited her 126 times in that chapel. The last visit was nine days before his death when he got out of the hospital. He brought her flowers. He prayed to her before and after every voyage he made outside of Rome. He so loved her, and she loved him,” Bishop Barber said. 

After the final prayers of commendation, Bishop Barber addressed the congregation a final time: “Thank you for joining us this evening. It’s a great encouragement to the whole Catholic community to see you here today and thank you for your affection and your love and your prayers for our dear Holy Father.”