UN chief hails Pope Francis as ‘a transcendent voice for peace’

This article is published in association with United Nations.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has joined the world in mourning the death of His Holiness Pope Francis, who passed away on Monday in Vatican City aged 88. 

The pontiff – born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina – was elected in March 2013.  He was the first priest from the Americas region to lead the Catholic Church worldwide and a strong voice for social justice globally.

Mr. Guterres described him as a messenger of hope, humility and humanity.

Legacy and inspiration

“Pope Francis was a transcendent voice for peace, human dignity and social justice. He leaves behind a legacy of faith, service and compassion for all — especially those left on the margins of life or trapped by the horrors of conflict,” he said.

Furthermore, he “was a man of faith for all faiths — working with people of all beliefs and backgrounds to light a path forward.”

The Secretary-General said the UN was greatly inspired by the Pope’s commitment to the goals and ideals of the global organization, a message that he conveyed in their various meetings.

Strong environmental message

The Secretary-General recalled that the Pope spoke of the organization’s ideal of a “united human family” during his historic visit to UN Headquarters in New York in 2015.

“Pope Francis also understood that protecting our common home is, at heart, a deeply moral mission and responsibility that belongs to every person,” said Mr. Guterres, noting that his second Encyclical – Laudato Si – was a major contribution to the global mobilisation that resulted in the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change.

“Pope Francis once said: “The future of humankind isn’t exclusively in the hands of politicians, of great leaders, of big companies…[it] is, most of all, in the hands of those people who recognize the other as a ‘you’ and themselves as part of an ‘us,’” he added.

The Secretary-General concluded by saying that “our divided and discordant world will be a much better place if we follow his example of unity and mutual understanding in our own actions.”

UN Photo/Kim Haughton

Pope Francis addresses the General Assembly during his visit to United Nations Headquarters in 2015.

Voice for change

During his September 2015 visit to the UN, Pope Francis delivered a wide-ranging address to leaders gathered in the General Assembly Hall to adopt the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

He urged global action to protect the environment and end the suffering of “vast ranks of the excluded.”  He also suggested that the UN could be improved and can “be the pledge of a secure and happy future for future generations”.

“The international juridical framework of the United Nations and of all its activities, like any other human endeavour, can be improved, yet it remains necessary,” he said.

Five years later, during the virtual meeting of the UN General Assembly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pope said the crisis was also an opportunity to rethink our way of life – and systems that are widening global inequality. 

People over profit

Pope Francis was a strong supporter of the UN, including its humanitarian work. 

He engaged with the three UN agencies based in Rome, namely the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).  

In a message to the FAO Conference in June 2021, he expressed concern over rising food insecurity amid the pandemic and called for developing a “circular economy” that both guarantees resources for all people and promotes the use of renewable energy sources.

“If we are to recover from the crisis that is ravaging us, we must develop an economy tailored to fit mankind, not motivated mainly by profit but anchored in the common good, ethically friendly and kind to the environment,” he said.

Ending conflict

Most recently, the Pope backed UN efforts towards ending the current unrest in South Sudan, where rising political tensions and fresh mobilization of the army and opposing armed groups in some regions have raised fears of a return to civil war.

The UN Special Representative for South Sudan, Nicholas Haysom, told the Security Council just last week that the UN Mission in the country, UNMISS, was engaged in intensive diplomatic efforts to broker a peaceful solution alongside many stakeholders, including the African Union, regional bloc IGAD, Pope Francis and others.