Pope Francis

CARDINAL ROGER MAHONY TO WITNESS SEALING OF THE COFFIN OF POPE FRANCIS

—Cardinal Mahony will also be present for the burial of the Holy Father—

As the Senior Cardinal Priest of the 204 Cardinal Priests in Rome, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, Archbishop Emeritus of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will witness the sealing of the coffin of Pope Francis on Friday. Vatican News reported today that the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff requested the presence at the Rite of Sealing of the Coffin on Friday of Cardinal Mahony along with Cardinals Giovanni Battista Re, Pietro Parolin, Domenique Mamberti, Mauro Gambetti, Baldassare Reina, and Konrad Krajewski.

Cardinal Mahony will also concelebrate at the Funeral Mass for Pope Francis on Saturday, April 26 in Rome. Following the Funeral Mass, the Cardinal will process to the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore (Saint Mary Major) to be present for the burial of Pope Francis.

“I was stunned and felt honored when I received the news to have been chosen for these special roles,” said Cardinal Mahony. “Pope Francis and I had a special friendship over the years, and we exchanged personal letters often.”

“God’s surprises never seem to end, and I am joyful that someone from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles was chosen for this role. It is yet another example of the importance of our wonderful Archdiocese. I carry out these roles with gratitude to the extraordinary Catholic community of Los Angeles under the leadership of Archbishop José Gomez, our Auxiliary Bishops, our priests and deacons, our men and women of Consecrated Life, and our outstanding lay Catholics. May our Risen Lord continue to bestow blessings upon all of us,” added the Archdiocese’s Archbishop Emeritus.

Cardinal Mahony was appointed as Archbishop of Los Angeles by Saint John Paul II on July 12, 1985 and was created as a Cardinal in June 28, 1991. He retired at the age of 75 on March 1, 2011. Cardinal Mahony has served in ministry in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for forty years and is celebrating the 50th anniversary as a bishop in 2025.

In anticipation of the funeral of the Holy Father Pope Francis in Rome, Archbishop José H. Gomez will celebrate a memorial Mass in thanksgiving for the life and ministry of Pope Francis on Friday at 12:10 p.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles. Archbishop Gomez will be joined by the Auxiliary Bishops and clergy of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and many faithful to pray for the soul the Holy Father and bid him a final farewell from the local church in the Archdiocese. The Mass will also be livestreamed on https://www.youtube.com/live/k9oaqz4F0c and @LACatholics and OLACathedral Facebook channels.

Pope Francis’ funeral Mass this Saturday will mark the beginning of an ancient tradition of holding nine consecutive days of mourning and prayer, Novendiales. Catholic churches and individuals in the Archdiocese will join Catholics across the world in prayer for the repose of his soul. At the Cathedral, the special prayerswill be said a few minutes before each Mass beginning Sunday, April 27 through May 4, as the Cathedral does not hold daily Mass on Saturdays. For more information on the Masses and Novendiales visit www.LACatholics.org/pope-francis.

Statement on the Death of the Holy Father Pope Francis

Most Reverend José H. Gomez • Archbishop of Los Angeles • April 21, 2025

I join the family of God here in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and Catholics all over the world, in grieving the loss of our Holy Father.

In this beautiful Easter season, when we celebrate our hope in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, we pray that the angels may lead Pope Francis into paradise, that the saints and martyrs welcome him, and that God in his mercy will make his face shine upon his faithful servant and grant him eternal rest in the love that never ends.

There will be more to say in the days ahead, but in this moment I find myself reflecting with gratitude on the Holy Father’s many kindnesses and expressions of pastoral care for us here in Los Angeles.

Over the years, he appointed seven auxiliary bishops to assist me in serving the family of God and he was always quick to show his spiritual closeness to us in our times of need. It was just in January that he offered prayers and words of consolation as we faced the destruction caused by the wildfires in the Palisades and Altadena. I will never forget his fraternal comfort as we mourned the sudden taking of our beloved Bishop David O’Connell in 2023.

In this time of mourning, my prayer is that all of us in the Church will honor Pope Francis’ legacy by remembering that he called us to urgent tasks that are still not finished:

We must continue our work of serving the poor, the migrant, and all who are forgotten on society’s “peripheries.”

We must persevere in caring for our common home, which is the earth, and in building a world that respects the sanctity and dignity of all human life and the Creator’s desire that we live in peace and fraternity as one human family.

And we must evangelize, spreading the joy of the Gospel as missionary disciples, accompanying our brothers and sisters and helping them to find in Jesus the happiness and love that every human heart longs for.

Above all, we must deepen our own love for Jesus and our commitment to seeking his holiness and reflecting his mercy and love in our daily lives.

Pope Francis showed us, by his constant example, that we should have a great devotion to the Virgin Mary, who is our Blessed Mother and the Mother of the Church. We turn to Holy Mary now, and we ask for her protection and tender care. May she wrap our Holy Father in the mantle of her love. And may he rest in peace.

Reverendísimo Monseñor José H. Gomez Arzobispo de Los Ángeles

21 de abril de 2025

Me uno a la familia de Dios aquí en la Arquidiócesis de Los Ángeles, y a los católicos de todo el mundo, en el dolor por la pérdida de nuestro Santo Padre. En esta hermosa temporada de pascua, en que celebramos nuestra esperanza en la Resurrección de Jesucristo, rezamos que los ángeles guíen al Papa Francisco al paraíso, que los santos y los mártires le dé la bienvenida, y que Dios, en su misericordia, haga resplandecer su rostro sobre su fiel servidor y le conceda el descanso eterno en el amor que nunca termina.

En este hermoso tiempo de pascua, en el que celebramos nuestra esperanza en la Resurrección de Jesucristo, rezamos para que los ángeles guíen al Papa Francisco al paraíso, para que los santos y los mártires le den la bienvenida, y para que Dios, en su misericordia, haga resplandecer su rostro sobre su fiel servidor y le conceda el descanso eterno en el amor que nunca termina. Habrá más cosas que decir en los próximos días, pero en este momento me encuentro reflexionando con gratitud sobre los muchos actos de bondad y expresiones de cuidado pastoral del Santo Padre para todos nosotros aquí en Los Ángeles.

A lo largo de los años, nombró a nueve obispos auxiliares para que me apoyaran en el servicio a la familia de Dios y siempre se apresuró de mostrarnos su cercanía espiritual en nuestros momentos de necesidad. Este mismo enero ofreció oraciones y palabras de consuelo cuando nos enfrentamos a la destrucción causada por los incendios forestales en Palisades y Altadena. Nunca olvidaré su consuelo fraternal mientras lamentábamos la muerte repentina de nuestro querido Obispo David O’Connell en 2023.

En este tiempo de luto, mi oración es que todos nosotros en la Iglesia honremos el legado del Papa Francisco recordando que nos llamó a tareas urgentes que aún no han terminado: Debemos continuar nuestra labor al servicio de los pobres, los emigrantes y todos los olvidados en las “periferias” de la sociedad. Debemos perseverar en el cuidado de nuestra casa común, que es la tierra, y en la construcción de un mundo que respete la santidad y la dignidad de toda vida humana y el deseo del Creador de que vivamos en paz y fraternidad como una sola familia humana.

Y debemos evangelizar, difundiendo la alegría del Evangelio como discípulos misioneros, acompañando a nuestros hermanos y ayudándoles a encontrar en Jesús la felicidad y el amor que todo corazón humano anhela. Por encima de todo, debemos profundizar en nuestro propio amor a Jesús y en nuestro compromiso de buscar su santidad y reflejar su misericordia y su amor en nuestra vida cotidiana.

El Papa Francisco nos ha mostrado, con su ejemplo constante, que debemos tener una gran devoción a la Virgen María, que es nuestra Santísima Madre y la Madre de la Iglesia. Nos dirigimos ahora a Santa María, y le pedimos su protección y su tierno cuidado. Que envuelva a nuestro Santo Padre en el manto de su amor. Y que descanse en paz.