By Devin Watkins

“Of the many facets of a person with the long life and responsibilities that he had to carry out, I would like to highlight Pope Francis’ dimension of ‘man of God’.”

Jesuit Superior General, Fr. Arturo Sosa, SJ, offered that summary of the late Pope’s life at a press conference held on Thursday, April 26, at the Jesuit Curia near the Vatican.

He expressed the Society of Jesus’ “grateful memory” of the Argentine-born Jesuit Pope.

“His approach to people and the situation in each context in which he lived is only grasped in its depth from the recognition of his spiritual experience,” said Fr. Sosa.

The late Pope Francis, he added, always sought to put into practice God’s will, so that he could contribute “to the transformation of humanity to make this world a worthy home for all human beings.”

Fr. Sosa said the Pope did not seek to measure his performance by other people’s standards, but only to assimilate the Gospel of Jesus and invite all people to become saints.

“The important thing was to listen to one another,” he said, “to dialogue with the complexity of reality, to scrutinize the signs of the times and in prayer, in familiarity with his Lord, to discern what is most appropriate at any given moment.”

The late Pope Francis dreamed that all people might live a dignified life and that the world might truly be a “common home in which we can all live as brothers and sisters.”

Fr. Sosa said the Pope was “a man who knew how to acquire God’s merciful gaze on human complexity and gave his life to open up greater spaces for common life.”

In conclusion, the Jesuit Superior General recalled that no matter who is elected to succeed Pope Francis, the Jesuits will faithfully fulfill their fourth vow of obedience to the Pope about the mission to be carried out.

“As soon as the new Pope is elected,” said Fr. Sosa, “we will make ourselves available to him, as we have done for more than 450 years.”