Pope Francis, known for promoting peace, helping refugees, dies at 88

Pope Francis, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church known for his efforts to promote peace, help for refugees and action on climate change, died Monday morning at his residence, the Vatican said. He was 88.

Francis, who in 2013 became head of the more than 1.3 billion Catholics around the world, was the first pontiff from Latin America and the first Jesuit pope. He was only the second pontiff to travel to Japan, visiting in 2019, 38 years after Pope John Paul II.

During his trip, Francis visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki, both devastated by U.S. atomic bombs in the final days of World War II. He called for the elimination of nuclear weapons in addresses in the two Japanese cities.

In Tokyo, he also met with victims of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan. As of 2022, there were around 422,000 Catholics in the Asian country, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

File photo shows Pope Francis attending a papal mass in Nagasaki on Nov. 24, 2019. (Kyodo)

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, said in an announcement, “At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church.”

The pope died after having a stroke and heart failure, his press office said. Only a day before his death, Francis made an appearance during an Easter event and briefly met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance in Vatican City.

Following the death of Francis, the Vatican is set to begin preparations for the funeral and for the conclave to elect a new pope.

Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio to an Italian immigrant family in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, the spiritual leader was beloved by Catholics as a simple, humble and down-to-earth man.

After studying philosophy in Buenos Aires, Francis became a literature teacher at an Argentine university. In 1969, he was ordained as a priest and went on to serve as the archbishop of Buenos Aires from 1998. In 2001, he was appointed as a cardinal.

He was elected as the 266th pope on March 13, 2013, days after his predecessor, Benedict XVI, shocked the world by becoming the first pontiff in about 600 years to voluntarily step down, citing health reasons.

Pontiffs are normally expected to serve until death.

While Francis did not change Catholic teachings on opposing same-sex marriage and abortion, he adopted a softer tone on LGBT issues. He urged Catholics not to be judgmental but to welcome LGBT members to the Church.

Known for advocating inter-religious tolerance and humanitarianism, the pontiff actively supported refugees, spoke out on environmental issues and promoted peace.

In 2016, he met with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. The meeting was seen as a symbolic moment in relations between the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, which split in 1054.

He also mediated in the reopening of diplomatic ties between the United States and Cuba in 2015, ending a 54-year freeze.

When Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he called for a cease-fire and later sent an envoy to Kyiv and Moscow.