Put Out into the Deep
April 22 2025
In this week’s newsletter we remember Pope Francis.
The Pontiff of Mercy
The death of Pope Francis came on Easter Monday. The Holy Father lived through one last celebration, shared by Christians around the world, of the truth he now knows and lives: Christ has risen. Death is defeated. We are free.
We pray for the Holy Father, that he will hear the words we all hope to hear when we pass through that doorway from darkness into light: Come, share your Master’s joy.
Pope Francis’s first apostolic exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel, called Catholics to evangelize: to be missionary disciples, not in order to force conformity to the will of the powerful, but in order to free those on the margins of society to live with dignity.
When LGBT/SSA+ people hear Jesus’ call, they follow Him. And they call others: “Come and see!”
Closeness, Compassion, Tenderness
Yesterday morning, Keith stepped into a parish church conveniently located across the street from his Target run, intending a moment of quiet adoration. He found a crowd of people assembled, and they were praying a litany and rosary before two large portraits: the Divine Mercy and Pope Francis.
We are already praying for the intercession of another Holy Father among the Blessed. The leader of the litany included him.
Saint John Paul II, pray for us.
Pope Francis, pray for us.
A Prayer for Intercession
God our Father, your servant Pope Francis was the Pontiff of Mercy who showed the world that Jesus is present in closeness, compassion, and tenderness.
Receive his prayers for us, that our works of mercy be infused with your grace.
Our touches bring healing and reveal the closeness of your Son.
Our words bring comfort and reveal that He suffers with us.
Our ministries gently invite His Love into the hearts of all we meet.
Today, I ask through Pope Francis' intercession... (Here mention your request.) ... I ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Your Prayers and Ours
Please remember in your prayers a dear friend of BCF who shares a name with Pope Francis. Francesco is a writer who suffered a stroke on the morning of Holy Thursday. He has returned home to Keith's care after a very long weekend in ICU. The stroke robbed him of his ability to read and write, among other deficits. Please pray for his return to wholeness.
Eve & Keith