By Elena Macias
Following the passing of Pope Francis, the diocese celebrated a special memorial Mass for him on April 25 at Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral in San Bernardino. Church protocol follows that every diocese in the world celebrate a memorial Mass for a deceased pope prior to his funeral Mass.
The chief celebrant of the Mass was Bishop Alberto Rojas with Bishop Emeritus Gerald Barnes, Vicar General Monsignor Gerard Lopez and the Vicars Forane of the diocese concelebrating. The Cathedral was adorned in its beautiful Easter white and gold fabrics, a risen Christ banner and a cross made of white lily flowers, creating the perfect setting to remember Pope Francis, who passed away in the early hours of Easter Monday, April 21.
“Pope Francis died just a few hours after Easter Sunday, it seemed like he was waiting for the celebration of the Resurrection to go home,” Bishop Rojas said. “He was truly a free man, who was not afraid of anyone or anything because he knew who he was and who he had entrusted his entire life.”
The faithful from across the diocese flocked to celebrate the life and legacy of Pope Francis. Before Mass, mourners filed into the church, filling every pew, with some standing, yet all who gathered displayed a dedication and desire to remember and pray for Francis, described by many as down-to-earth.
“Pope Francis was a pope for the people, he was very special and loved and reached out to all people and that’s what made him so special,” said Sister Sina Onoro, Sisters of the Company of Mary (ODN). “He will be missed, and we look forward to who the new pope will be, we’re excited.”
Not only did many parishioners flock to the memorial Mass, but moments before the Mass began, it could be heard from staff that they needed to reserve another pew for all the priests coming to celebrate the late Holy Father. In all, more than 50 priests attended the Mass.
“Saint John Paul II taught us the love of God by his travels, by his life, Pope Benedict taught us why we should love God and Pope Francis taught us how to love God and how to love one another,” Father Benedict Nwachukwu-Udaku said. “So, I appreciate him so much because of his humility and simplicity and teaching us the how. The ‘how’ is important in our Christian life.”
During his homily, Bishop Rojas took some time to read some quotes from Pope Francis on various topics such as mercy, joy, the environment, families, and migrants, to show how the legacy and ministry of Pope Francis can continue on despite his passing.
Our Lady of the Assumption parishioner Elizabeth Bazquez remembers Pope Francis for his ministry, the love, care and compassion he had for all people, especially the marginalized.
“His ministry was for the people, especially for the ones that needed it the most, like the homeless, people that are in jail, because sometimes they lose hope, people they lose hope,” Bazquez said. “But he made them believe again. He was on their side. [He was a] pope for the people and a very charitable person.”
Similarly, when Laura Corral Flores from Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral recalls Pope Francis, she remembers him as being very inclusive to all people and displaying the heart of Jesus.
“He included everyone,” Corral Flores said. “He created an image and likeness of God, and he breathed it and he spoke it and he lived it and that is the beauty of Pope Francis.”
Many of the faithful at the memorial Mass were young Catholics, including Carla Sanchez, who witnessed a personal experience with Pope Francis that has remained in her cherished memories.
“I went to World Youth Day in Portugal in 2023… and during that time, I felt God’s presence really strong,” Sanchez said. “[Pope Francis] said that we are all called to be disciples and to be part of the Church and that he always has an open door for us and that God is always love and mercy. I still have it on my Instagram as my memory. It stays in my memory what he said. He was very welcoming to everyone.”
Other young adult Catholics, Khaeryst Estrella and Macpherson Rodriguez, parishioners of Our Lady of the Assumption, recognize that social media served as a powerful tool to share the ministry of Pope Francis.
“It was actually really shocking for me, I’m 25 so, we’ve been alive for the last few popes, but this is the first time we’re really remembering,” Estrella said. “He is really the first pope that we spent a lot of time with hearing from first-hand, I think that’s the age of social media that we live in right now.”
Rodriguez added that the use of social media to share Pope Francis’ message could be a reason for the increase of Catholic baptisms.
“Social media started getting big right around the time Pope Francis came into the papacy and so for a lot of people, it was the first time getting exposed to Catholicism… I think we’ll remember Pope Francis as kind of laying the groundwork for all these increased conversions we’ve seen lately.”
Above all, Estrella and Rodriguez agree that Pope Francis will be remembered by them as a pope that served the people.
“He was just a man of the people,” Estrella said. “I remember reading that he asked his nurse if it was okay he could go into the town one last time… on that Easter Sunday… and the nurse said ‘okay.’ It was just so beautiful to see that was his final wish; to spend it with the flock, he was a wonderful shepherd… I think he said early in his papacy that ‘the Shepherd must smell like their sheep’ and I truly believe that he embraced that until his very last day. He really wanted to make the Church know that he was our servant.”
Added Rodriguez, “there’s something really beautiful in that right after the Resurrection, Pope Francis is taken into God’s embrace. Against the better judgment of all people trying to take care of him, he said, ‘I want to go see the people.’ That just shows the love that he had, the love that he had for the people, the love that he had for the Church, the love that he has for God.”
Following the funeral Mass for Pope Francis on April 26, the diocese began a nine-day period of mourning for the Holy Father, per Church protocol. The diocese observed the Novena by offering a memorial Mass for Pope Francis each night in a different Jubilee site church. Masses were held at Holy Family, Hesperia; St. Thomas the Apostle, Riverside; St. Frances of Rome, Wildomar; St. Andrew Newman Center, Riverside, St. Paul the Apostle, Chino Hills; Our Lady of Guadalupe, San Bernardino; Sacred Heart, Palm Desert; St. George, Ontario and Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral.
Elena Macias is the Managing Editor of the Inland Catholic BYTE and El Compás Católico.