Pope Francis was great Christian unity advocate 

County Ecumenical Officer for Norfolk and Waveney, Dr Ian Watson, who met Pope Francis in January, says he was one of the great advocates for Christian unity.

I was fortunate enough to meet Pope Francis in January on the Churches Together in Norfolk and Waveney’s ecumenical pilgrimage to Rome.  Justifiably, over the next few weeks there will be an enormous number of generous and loving tributes to him and his life-long service to the Church. 
 
I think of all the recent Popes, he was truly the Pope of peace, mercy and hope, especially for the marginalised and poor of the world. For me, however, he was also the Pope who most lovingly advocated for Christian unity, and that is how I want to remember him. 
 
I remember very clearly the homily that he gave at an ecumenical gathering after the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2024.  He reflected on the theme for that year: "You shall love the Lord your God ... and your neighbour as yourself" from Luke 10:27.
 
This passage comes from the Gospel story in which a scholar of the law asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. After Jesus affirms the need to love God and one's neighbour, the scholar asks, "And who is my neighbour?"
 
Pope Francis said: "This question attempts to divide, to separate people into those we should love and those we should shun." For him he remarked: "This kind of division is never from God; it is from the devil."
 
What I found inspirational was what he then said:
 
"Only a love that becomes gratuitous service, only the love that Jesus taught and embodied, will bring separated Christians closer to one another.  Only that love, which does not appeal to the past in order to remain aloof or to point a finger, only that love which in God's name puts our brothers and sisters before the ironclad defence of our own religious structures, will unite us."
 
Pope Francis’ life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of the Church.  For me he brought to life Vatican II, and he taught me to live the values of the Gospel with hope, courage, and love, especially for the poorest and most marginalised.
 
He was a true disciple, an example to us all, who gave his love without condition to all his brothers and sisters in Christ.  He will be sorely missed, not just by the Roman Catholic Church but the Universal Church.
 
Dr Ian Watson
County Ecumenical Officer

Pictured above is Pope Francis in his popemobile during a driveabout during World Youth Day in Lisbon in 2023. Picture by Keith Morris.