With his election, Pope Francis became the first pontiff belonging to the Society of Jesus. This affiliation with a religious order made him particularly attentive to the lives of consecrated persons. Even today, one year after his passing, his love and affection for them, whom he considered «bearers of light for the women and men of our time» continue to be felt more strongly than ever.

Consecrated women, bearers of light for the people of our time

In February 2025, during the 29th World Day of Consecrated Life, recalling the words «Here I am […] to do your will, O God» (Heb 10:7), Pope Francis invited consecrated men and women to reflect on how they can be «bearers of light for the women and men of our time, through the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience» they profess.

By living poverty, Pope Francis emphasized, «the consecrated person, through a free and generous use of all things, becomes for them a bearer of blessing: they reveal their goodness in the order of love, reject everything that can obscure their beauty—selfishness, greed, dependency, violent use and use for purposes of death—and instead embrace everything that can exalt it: sobriety, generosity, sharing, solidarity».

The virtue of consecrated chastity—continued the Pope—«shows us a path of healing from the evil of isolation, in the practice of a way of loving that is free and liberating, which welcomes and respects everyone and neither constrains nor rejects anyone. What a remedy for the soul it is to encounter religious women and men capable of such mature and joyful relationality! They are a reflection of divine love».

Finally, underscoring the importance of obedience, he stated: «Consecrated obedience is an antidote to solitary individualism», promoting «a model of relationship marked by active listening, in which ‘speaking’ and ‘listening’ are followed by the concreteness of ‘acting,’ even at the cost of renouncing my own tastes, my plans, and my preferences».

Returning to the inspiration of the founders, without rigidity

On the occasion of the audience with the Plenary Assembly of the UISG in 2022, Pope Francis, setting aside his prepared speech and responding off the cuff to questions, urged the Superiors General present to «return to the inspiration of the founders, without rigidity and along a synodal path of belonging», since, he added, «the Church does not need frozen nuns. On the contrary, consecrated life must be integrated within a Church, but not a ‘deep-freeze’ Church, rather an authentic Church».

During the words of thanks, Pope Bergoglio asked forgiveness for all the times in which ecclesiastical authorities have exploited religious women, failed to understand them, or deprived them of their independence: «It is true that the Bishop is always the Bishop, but the religious man and the religious woman are always religious. And Saint Catherine of Siena, when she had to argue and assert herself with a Bishop, was not afraid, she called things by their proper name».

Moreover, when he received the participants in the 2013 Plenary Assembly, speaking about the fruitful chastity that generates spiritual children in the Church, Pope Francis joked: «The consecrated woman is a mother; she must be a mother and not a spinster! Forgive me if I speak this way, but this motherhood of consecrated life, this fruitfulness, is important! May this joy of spiritual fruitfulness animate your existence; be mothers, in the image of Mary Mother and of the Church Mother. One cannot understand Mary without her motherhood, one cannot understand the Church without her motherhood, and you are an icon of Mary and of the Church».

The culture of encounter: a lived style

Pope Francis had a very meaningful personal relationship with religious sisters, in the perspective of the culture of encounter. In 2019, for example, he wished to make an unexpected visit to a sick nun, Sr. Maria Mucci, who for several years had worked at the Santa Marta residence in the Vatican, where the Supreme Pontiff lived. Five years later, he met Sr. Norma Pimentel, a missionary who works with migrants in the United States of America, and in a video message he personally thanked her: «Thank you for what you and your whole team are doing... Thank you for welcoming migrants who seek a better life, who want to grow, while living a social hell».

The last of these personal encounters was probably in St. Peter’s Basilica on April 6, 2025, shortly before his passing. Sr. Francesca Battiloro, in cloister for 75 years, was then on pilgrimage to Rome when, during a moment of prayer, the Bishop of Rome approached her. Taking her hand and referring to a visit in 2015, he asked, «But are you one of the sisters from Naples? » Recalling that moment, the 94-year-old religious commented: «I had asked God to meet him, but it seemed impossible. Instead, He sent him to meet me».

In February 2025, moreover, the Pope met a group of young participants in the Talitha Kum event, the UISG network against human trafficking. Thanking them, he recalled the Sudanese religious saint Bakhita, who became an inspiration for other sisters: «We meet on the eve of the feast of Saint Josephine Bakhita, who was a victim of this terrible social scourge. Her story gives us great strength, showing us how, despite the injustices and suffering endured, with the grace of the Lord it is possible to break the chains, regain freedom, and become messengers of hope for others who are in difficulty».