“On this holiest of days, when we celebrate the triumph of life over death through our Risen Lord, the earthly journey of a faithful servant of God came to its close and his eternal rest began – in the peace of Christ, in the love of the Father, and in the communion of the Holy Spirit,” wrote Pillay and Bedford-Strohm. 

“Together with the entire Roman Catholic Church, we at the World Council of Churches mourn the loss of an extraordinary shepherd of the people of God.” 

Pillay and Bedford-Strohm reflected that Pope Francis will be remembered with gratitude and love by Christians and all people of good will around the world. 

“Throughout his ministry, Pope Francis offered a prophetic voice for our times,” the letter reads. "His witness to the Gospel, his heartfelt call for Christian unity, and his tireless advocacy for the marginalized have left an indelible mark on the global Christian community.”

Pope Francis lived his life in full devotion to God and the church, Pillay and Bedford-Strohm noted. 

“We recall with gratitude Pope Francis’s historic visit to the World Council of Churches and the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey in 2018, a moment that symbolized his deep commitment to Christian unity,” wrote Pillay and Bedford-Strohm. “The WCC leadership appreciated special private meetings with Pope Francis to discuss matters of mutual ecumenical interest and concerns.”

Notably, Pope Francis was also a committed advocate for a common date of Easter for all Christians, continued Pillay and Bedford-Strohm. “It is therefore deeply symbolic that he passed away in the very year when all Christians celebrates the Feast of the Resurrection on the same day – an occasion he longed and prayed for,” the letter reads. “On behalf of the World Council of Churches, we extend our heartfelt condolences to his friends, collaborators in the Vatican, to the entire Roman Catholic Church, and to the whole ecumenical family.”