Dale Sprusansky
POPE FRANCIS’ 12-YEAR PAPACY was in many ways contentious, as his political, theological and liturgical views were often hotly debated within Catholic circles and beyond. It could be said that his pontificate reflected, rather than transcended, the political and social fault lines that define our times. Nonetheless, by virtue of his office, he remained a unifying figure and a prominent voice whose opinions altered the global discourse.
Francis often used his public pulpit to express his deep love and concern for the poor and marginalized, particularly refugees, the imprisoned and those suffering due to others’ slavish pursuit of wealth and power. This perhaps explains why the Middle East was frequently on the late pope’s mind and agenda. His travels to the region were extensive, having visited Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Türkiye, Egypt, the UAE, Morocco, Iraq and Bahrain.
These trips, while highly significant and important, are not Francis’ enduring legacy vis-à-vis the region.
Francis will be most remembered in the Middle East for his private and public solidarity with the people of Gaza. After Francis’ death, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, tasked by Rome with the challenge of representing and serving the Church in both Israel and Palestine (as well as Jordan), described Gaza as “one of the symbols of his pontificate.”
Nearly every night following Oct. 7, 2023—even when he was seriously ill in the hospital—the pope called Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza City to check in on parishioners and their neighbors. “He would ask us how we were, what did we eat, did we have clean water, was anyone injured?” George Anton, a spokesperson for Gaza’s sole Catholic parish, told NPR. “It was never diplomatic or a matter of obligation. It was the questions a father would ask.”
These conversations clearly moved Francis and emboldened him to speak frankly about Israel’s crimes in Gaza. In Christmas remarks to Vatican officials last year, Francis said, “Yesterday, children were bombed [by Israel]. This is cruelty, not war. I want to say this because it touches the heart.” That same Christmas season, the pope prayed before a Nativity scene crafted in Bethlehem that featured a baby Jesus swaddled in a black-and-white Palestinian keffiyeh. Last year, he also acknowledged credible determinations that Israel is conducting a genocide in Gaza and called for further investigation into the claim.
Hours before he died, Francis made one final plea for the people of Gaza in his written Easter address to the world. “Think of the people of Gaza, and its Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation,” he said. “I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace!”
Francis first raised eyebrows in the region in 2014, when he unexpectedly altered his tour of the Holy Land to pray in Bethlehem along the Israeli-constructed wall (often referred to as the “apartheid wall”) that separates Palestinians from their families and traditional lands. That gesture was highly symbolic and moving for many Palestinians, and perhaps left a lasting impression on Francis.
It must be noted that Francis’ strong support for the Palestinian people did not come at the expense of his concern for Israelis. In his February 2024 letter “To My Jewish Brothers and Sisters in Israel,” Francis said, “I want you to know that you are close to my heart and to the heart of the Church….I feel the desire to assure you of my closeness and affection. I embrace each of you, and especially those who are consumed by anguish, pain, fear and even anger.” In the same letter, he emphasized, “We must never lose hope for a possible peace—and we must do everything possible to promote it, rejecting every form of defeatism and mistrust…doing everything possible to create relationships capable of opening new horizons of light for everyone, Israelis and Palestinians.”
Many activists and observers sympathetic to Palestine likely see such sentiments as antiquated, painfully reminiscent of the false aspirations uttered by the insincere interlocutors of the “peace process” who helped engineer the current brutal reality. Many pro-Israel voices, meanwhile, likely encounter such words with derision, believing Francis to have been inherently hostile toward Israel. But Francis’ sincere words are emblematic of a papacy in which he challenged the world to aspire to a higher ideal while striving to keep hope—a foundational Christian virtue—alive. Francis saw no contraction in staunchly defending Palestinians, acknowledging the humanity of Israelis and bluntly challenging leaders to do right by the marginalized.
Perhaps the most consistent way Francis admonished global leaders was by condemning the global arms industry. “May everyone get over this idea that problems can be solved with weapons,” he said while visiting Jordan in 2014. “Let’s pray for these criminals who are selling weapons, fueling hatred.”
He repeated this sentiment in a September 2015 address to the U.S. Congress, a legislative body that certainly never shared Francis’ vision for investing in human development over weapons of war. “Why are deadly weapons being sold to those who plan to inflict untold suffering on individuals and society?” he asked. “Sadly, the answer, as we all know, is simply for money: money that is drenched in blood, often innocent blood. In the face of this shameful and culpable silence, it is our duty to confront the problem and to stop the arms trade.”
Francis made this plea one final time this Easter: “Nor is peace possible without true disarmament! The requirement that every people provide for its own defense must not turn into a race to rearmament. I appeal to all those in positions of political responsibility in our world not to yield to the logic of fear which only leads to isolation from others, but rather to use the resources available to help the needy, to fight hunger and to encourage initiatives that promote development. These are the ‘weapons’ of peace: weapons that build the future, instead of sowing seeds of death!”
Some, particularly members of the lay Catholic intelligentsia, cling to Just War Theory as a means to justify nearly every act of war they desire, but Francis advocated a more prophetic and forward-looking theory: that weapons do not bring forth justice, but rather proliferate injustice.
Francis’ detestation of the weapons industry likely stemmed from his deep solidarity with refugees, many of whom have been driven from home by violence fueled by the industry. His first official trip outside of Rome after getting elected was to the Italian island of Lampedusa, where he spoke to migrants who had just arrived from Libya and decried the “globalization of indifference” to their plight. In 2016, he traveled to Lesbos, Greece and brought 12 Syrian refugees back to Rome on his plane.
Francis’ care for the refugee was perhaps best manifested in his historic 2021 visit to Iraq, when he became the first Roman pontiff to ever visit the country. His apostolic journey was a great comfort to the weary Christians of Iraq, who had just emerged from nearly 20 years of brutal war—first the deadly U.S. invasion of Iraq which eviscerated the country’s ancient Christian population, followed by ISIS’ genocidal campaign.
The pope used his trip to promote unity and offer hope to those returning from refuge and trying to rebuild their lives, communities and country. “Our gathering here today shows that terrorism and death never have the last word,” he said in the northern city of Qaraqosh. “The last word belongs to God….Even amid the ravages of terrorism and war, we can see, with the eyes of faith, the triumph of life over death.”
Notably, Francis also visited Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the spiritual leader of Iraq’s Shi’i community, while he was in Najaf. The meeting showcased the pope’s great passion for interfaith dialogue and encounter. In this same spirit, Francis signed the “Document on Human Fraternity,” which promotes inter-religious coexistence, while visiting the UAE in 2019. Interfaith relations were also at the center of his visits to Bahrain, Egypt and Morocco. Some expressed concern that the leaders of these authoritarian states with rampant human rights violations used Pope Francis’ visits to boost their international image by showcasing their alleged tolerance. While visiting these countries, Francis often made pleas for regional peace and freedom of religion, but did not publicly criticize his hosts.
Pope Francis’ interactions with the Middle East were both practical and aspirational. He called for concrete actions to stop war and displacement, while also imagining a future where dialogue and solidarity within and between nations would make violence and hatred unthinkable. The world would be wise to mimic Pope Francis on both accounts by taking immediate action to end suffering and by conjuring the hope to dare to dream of a better tomorrow.
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Dale Sprusansky is the managing editor of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.
