CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Hundreds packed the Saint Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral in Cagayan de Oro City on Monday afternoon, April 28, to mourn Pope Francis – joined, strikingly, by leaders of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI), a nationalist church that emerged from a break with the Vatican in the early 1900s.
The gathering, held two days after the late Pope’s funeral, served as a solemn farewell to the beloved pontiff as it laid bare the extraordinary reach of his life and ministry, a papacy defined by an insistence on mercy over dogma, inclusion over exclusion.
Founded in the early 20th century during the Philippine struggle for independence from Spanish colonial rule, the IFI had long stood apart from the Roman Catholic Church, critical of its hierarchy and authority.
Yet on Monday, IFI leaders in Cagayan de Oro stood in solidarity, paying tribute to the Roman Catholic pope who broke old molds, championed the poor and the displaced, and called for a church that belonged to the people.
IFI leaders formally conveyed their condolences to the Roman Catholic Church in Cagayan de Oro.
The 88-year-old Pope Francis, the first Jesuit to ascend to the papacy, died on April 21 and was interred at Vatican City on Saturday, April 26.
IFI Bishop Felixberto Calang, delivering a message during the requiem Mass, said that by demonstrating what it means to lead by serving without condition, Pope Francis had become “a pope of the people at the margins.”
“As one in the shared heritage of apostolic faith, the Iglesia Filipina Independiente gives thanks for Pope Francis’ legacy of revolutionary love and radical sympathy,” read a message from the Obispado Máximo, the IFI’s highest governing body.
Roman Catholic Archbishop Emeritus Antonio Ledesma of Cagayan de Oro recalled Pope Francis’ efforts to foster interfaith dialogue, noting that during his 2015 visit to the country, the pontiff met with leaders of other religious groups as part of his mission to build bridges across faiths.
It was this charisma, Ledesma said, that drew Filipinos closer to the Church that had become “a mother to all.”
Love and devotion
Inside the packed cathedral in this predominantly Roman Catholic city, 60-year-old Maria Rosal quietly made her way to the altar. Taking out a handkerchief, she wiped clean the glass frame of a large portrait of Pope Francis placed near the front.
Rosal had rushed to the cathedral after finishing her household chores in Upper Carmen, determined to join the hundreds who had gathered for the requiem Mass celebrating the life of the late pope.
“God gifted Pope Francis so he can serve us for a long time. He left us a life of caring for the poor and migrants. That is already a miracle for me,” Rosal said.
As Rosal and hundreds of others listened, Ledesma summed up Pope Francis’ life and legacy during his homily: “Truly a shepherd of all seasons.”
Ledesma, himself a Jesuit, recalled that Pope Francis had called for a “church of the poor,” urging priests to live humbly and take a more active role in protecting the environment.
In Northeastern Mindanao, Roman Catholic churches marked the day of the pope’s funeral by ringing their bells in tribute. Archbishop Cosme Damian Almedilla of the Diocese of Butuan had directed all parishes to ring their bells that day in gratitude for a pontiff who had placed care for the poor, the downtrodden, migrants, and the environment at the center of his ministry. – Rappler.com