DEAR EDITOR:

The world is mourning the loss of a holy man, a good man, Pope Francis.

He was a universal pope. His humility, simplicity, compassion, kindness and love of humanity touched billions of lives all over the world, regardless of their faith or religious affiliations.

Instead of living in a palace, he elected to live in a simple residence, next to the Vatican. He reluctantly rode the Pope Mobile, and preferred to walk and touch the masses, especially the poor. He was accepting, forgiving and loving. He accepted all people, regardless of gender, color, creed or economic status.

He considered all humans to be sacred creations of God. I will never forget watching him washing the feet of a poor Muslim woman, or embracing poor children with tenderness and love.

His words have become my mantra: “You are the happiest when you know that others are happy because of you.”

His request, before he passed away, was to be buried in a simple wooden coffin, not in the majestic vaults of the Vatican, where all past popes are entombed, but in a cemetery, with the poor.

Leaders from all over the world traveled to Rome, including the president and first lady of the United States, to pay homage to this Holy Man, this great man, Pope Francis. All his life, as a pope, he appealed, cajoled, begged and sometimes chastised those same leaders to stop violence, stop wars, and live together in a peaceful world. If those leaders have the power to start wars, they have the power to stop them! Pope Francis may not have succeeded, but he never gave up hope. He also said: “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and respect for the views of others.”

To honor him, and to memorialize him, it seems only proper that these same leaders grant him his wish: take this moment in history: stop violence, and stop all wars, even just for one month! A year?

To the leaders of the world, consider this as a challenge, and put meaning into your journey, to your lives, to Pope Francis’s legacy and to history, instead of just another meaningless and soon to be forgotten photo op.

Pope Francis, a universal pope, who should be honored, remembered and memorialized, universally.

May he rest in peace.

RASHID ABDU, MD

Canfield