'Humility and compassion': Utahns mourn death of Pope Francis

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Utahns mourn Pope Francis' death, praising his humility and compassion for marginalized people.
• Utah elected officials expressed condolences, highlighting the pope's global impact.
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recalled a historic 2019 meeting between its leaders and the pope, celebrating his leadership and service.

SALT LAKE CITY — Several prominent Utahns and religious leaders mourned the death of Pope Francis on Monday, recalling his life of "humility and compassion" and celebrating the care he showed to marginalized people around the world.

Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Easter Monday at age 88, according to the Vatican. The pontiff was hospitalized for double pneumonia earlier this year but was released in stable condition in March.

"Pope Francis lived an exemplary life marked by humility and compassion — blessing countless lives with his service and leadership," Utah Sen. John Curtis posted on X. "As we mourn his loss, Sue and I pray for those who turned to him for guidance and encouragement, including those in Utah's Catholic community."

"May Pope Francis rest in the peace and joy of God, and may our Catholic brothers and sisters across the world be given comfort and grace today and always," said Utah Sen. Mike Lee.

Rep. Celeste Maloy said, "Pope Francis lives his life in the service of others and will be remembered for his extraordinary compassion and humility. My thoughts and prayers go out to Christians in Utah and around the world who looked to him for inspiration and are mourning his passing."

Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson said on X: "Gabe and I join people throughout the world in mourning the death of Pope Francis. He cared about people on the margins, the most needy and vulnerable among us, and reminded us all that our first duty is to love and serve others. May we follow his example."

Gov. Spencer Cox shared several social media posts mourning the pope, including a video of Francis being driven through St. Peter's Square in the open-air popemobile on Sunday.

Cox issued an order for flags in Utah to fly at half-staff in honor of the pope until sunset on the day of interment.

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued a statement mourning Francis.

"We join the world in mourning the passing of His Holiness Pope Francis," the First Presidency said. "Countless lives have been blessed by his courageous and compassionate leadership. We extend our heartfelt condolences to all who looked to him for inspiration and counsel. As the world pauses to remember his example of forgiveness and service, we feel deep gratitude for the goodness of a life well lived and rejoice in the hope of a glorious resurrection made possible through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ."

The First Presidency recalled a historic meeting between President Russell M. Nelson and Francis in 2019 inside the Vatican. President Nelson gave the pontiff a copy of "The Family: A Proclamation to the World."

"We had a most cordial, unforgettable experience with His Holiness," President Nelson said of that meeting. "He was most gracious and warm and welcoming. What a sweet, wonderful man he is, and how fortunate the Catholic people are to have such a gracious, concerned, loving, and capable leader."

Most Rev. Oscar A. Solis, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City, said he was "deeply saddened" to learn of the pope's death, whom he called "a true pastor who lived the Gospel values and called on others to defend the dignity of human life from conception to natural death, to work for justice and peace, to protect the earth as our common home, to promote global humanity and social friendship, and perhaps most of all, to encounter the love of Jesus Christ."

"We have lost our humble shepherd, but even as we mourn, we remember his remarkable contributions to our church and the world," the bishop wrote. "Pope Francis spoke so often of the joy of the Gospel, and he repeatedly called us to share that Good News, the universal love and mercy of God to all people, especially with those living on the margins: the migrant, the poor, the lost and the least."

Solis announced a Memorial Mass of the Dead will be celebrated at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday in the Cathedral of the Madeleine in Salt Lake City.

Catholic Community Services of Utah shared a quote on social media from Francis about the Good Samaritan parable, in which Francis said: "Each day we have to decide whether to be Good Samaritans or indifferent bystanders."

"The parable of the Good Samaritan was so close to the heart of Pope Francis. To him, it was not just a nice story — it was a choice for each of us to make about how we live and treat those around us," the organization said. "As we mourn the loss of Pope Francis, may we, as Jesus said, 'Go and do likewise.'"

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

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Bridger Beal-Cvetko

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Bridger Beal-Cvetko is a reporter for KSL.com. He covers politics, Salt Lake County communities and breaking news. Bridger has worked for the Deseret News and graduated from Utah Valley University.