EDITORIAL: Pope Francis paved the way for change in the Catholic Church
The recent death of Pope Francis has caused many to reflect on his life as leader of the largest Christian church in the world.
With the passing of the pope this Easter, it has made me reflect on his legacy and influence on the Catholic Church and the wider world, writes Aoife Sheehan.
I would consider myself a critic of the church when I think about it, however, I do think that Pope Francis paved the way for change during his time as pope.
He was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2013 until his recent death in 2025.
Pope Francis symbolises many firsts for the church in my eyes. He was the first pope from Latin America in the churches 265 previous leaders historically.
Pope Francis was the first pope to speak about climate change as a moral issue and to increase financial transparency in the Vatican.
With this in mind, it is true that he is regarded by many as a more liberal pope, mostly due to the above but also because of him opening up dialogue between members of the church and lay people, regarding social issues facing society today. He encouraged debate about social issues, which is unusual from the church who previously shied away from any form of public discussion on social issues they did not agree with.
While he did open a dialogue for discussion, he was also not as accepting as one would hope regarding the usual social issues of today. Those who called for the ordination of women to become priests were distraught when Pope Francis finally gave the answer to these campaigners, saying that women would never be ordained as such in the church.
For those who wished for changes like the above and for the church to be more accepting of other issues, this is where the late pope fell short.
However, even though significant issues and change were not brought to the Catholic Church during his rule, the willingness to even open a dialogue and discuss these issues is more than some could hope for. In one way it is paving the road for future change, I hope.