Pope Leo XIV has paused in prayer before a plaque commemorating his predecessor, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who served as Archbishop of Buenos Aires for seven years ahead of his election as Pope Francis. Source: Vatican News.
The marble plaque is kept behind the altar of the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity in Buenos Aires, alongside his coat of arms bearing the motto Miserando atque eligendo.
It commemorates the man who, before becoming Pope, was the pastor of this large and populous archdiocese. The plaque was already in place and was updated after Pope Francis’s death and restored for Pope Leo XIV’s visit.
Before celebrating Vespers with the Argentine bishops and the synodal teams at the end of his second day in Argentina, the Pope paused before the memorial for a few moments of silence and prayer.
Pope Leo had already spoken of Pope Francis several times in recent days, beginning on the flight and continuing in nearly all his addresses during his first two days in Buenos Aires. He also remembered him in his Vespers homily, recalling the historic assembly at Aparecida.
The Argentine bishops stood behind the Pope. Beside him were Cardinal Marcelo Colombo, president of the Bishops’ Conference, and six children chosen from parishes and associations in the archdiocese.
The children carried small bouquets. With the Pope beside them, they knelt and laid the flowers beneath the plaque. They then stood still together for a few moments.
Pope Francis’s eight nieces and nephews were moved, too. Pope Leo had invited them, and at the end of the celebration they gave him a white rose to thank him for welcoming them and for visiting their country.
It was a white rose just like the one that is always kept on Pope Francis’s tomb at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome. For Pope Francis, the rose was a sign that St. Thérèse of Lisieux was by his side in his important decisions and in daily life. He was deeply devoted to her and carried a small holy card with her image in his pants pocket.
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Pope Leo XIV pays tribute to Pope Francis in Buenos Aires Cathedral (By Salvatore Cernuzio, Vatican News)