THE passing of Pope Francis, at age 88 has been the focus of intense media reportage worldwide. Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina to Italian parents, the former bouncer and janitor became a Jesuit and rose through the ranks until his elevation to the papacy on the resignation of Pope Benedict in 2013.
The reaction to his death has been fascinating in numerous respects. The truth is that, like the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church he served and represented so well, Pope Francis was not easily amenable to ideological description – at least not according to the left vs. right fault lines that are increasingly to the fore in 2025.
The extremely conservative Republican and occasional espouser of conspiracy theories, United States Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, posted on Twitter/X in the wake of the announcement from the Vatican: “Today there were major shifts in global leadership. Evil is being defeated by the hand of God.”
Conversely, and in a far more measured tone, Justine McCarthy, noting that Pope Francis was a “good man,” wrote in her Irish Times column entitled “Pope Francis put women on a pedestal, where they could do no harm” that “for many women, his words were patronising” and noted that ex-President Mary McAleese once accused the pontiff of “misogynistic drivel.”
Pope Francis repeatedly challenged politicians and activists of all stripes, equally. In September of last year, for instance, he rather ambiguously called on American Catholics to choose the “lesser evil” of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. In his words: “Both are against life, be it the one who kicks out migrants, or be it the one who kills babies.”
Speaking personally as a practising Catholic, Pope Francis was the earthly embodiment of the transcendent values of our faith. He eschewed the trappings of his exalted role, opting to live in a simple apartment and apparently having merely €90 to his name when he took leave of this ephemeral existence for what we believe is eternal life in heaven. To me, it was his genuine ordinariness that made Francis truly extraordinary.
Papal politics will be in full flow in the weeks to come and, if precedent is any dictate, making predictions as to who will be next is a fool’s errand. A shock could well lie in store. Suffice it to say that whoever succeeds Pope Francis has very, very big shoes to fill. May this exemplary servant of God and of all of us rest in the peace he championed fearlessly.
Dream big, pay more
“HOW did you find it over there?” is a question that’s been posed multiple times since my return from an enjoyable sojourn in New York and Boston, which began with the Galway footballers’ defeat of the exiles in Gaelic Park and was punctuated by Rory McIlroy’s amazing triumph at the Masters. My reply to surprised interrogators is that I didn’t discover a territory or a citizenry in the throes of tumult or despair.
Despite the chaos of an unprecedented presidency, most people I encountered were getting on with things. A blend of indifference and resignation about the words and deeds of the controversial commander-in-chief was more prevalent, in my experience, than either the outrage or hero worship that we are constantly told divides the US into two fighting tribes.
What I did hit upon in dealing with a broad cross section of individuals in a variety of disparate contexts was the strong work ethic that Americans have been known for historically. It was heartening to witness it; I remain convinced that, for all its myriad problems, the land of my birth is still a place where those willing to put their shoulders to the wheel can achieve their dreams.
Yet again, however, the most dispiriting reality to me stateside, one that occupies nowhere near as large a space on the radar screen of elected officials and in civic discourse generally as it should, is the exorbitant cost of higher education. Why is it that the vast majority of other countries in the world can educate young women and men to third level without crippling them financially? A degree is often the passport to prosperity. A price tag of $80,000 or more per year at the best American institutions has rendered the acquisition of that winning ticket wholly inaccessible or tantamount to assuming a massive mortgage prior to commencing a career for many.
Much is appropriately made of President Trump’s regrettable war on colleges and universities, in particular their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and the undeniably leftist orientation of their faculties. Were the Democrats wise, though, they too would be waging a war on the same front, but with a radically different goal in mind: cut your absurd fees so that putative students of average means are not shut out or reduced to de facto slaves to debt on graduation – or else. Even if the “or else” is a toothless tiger of a threat, the political dividends to be gained from finally grappling with the quintessential “kitchen table” issue in the US would be significant.
Quiet times, but housing crisis looms
HERE is Ireland, these are comparatively quiet days in politics. After a protracted debate of little practical utility over speaking rights in the Dáil, Oireachtas committees are at last being formed, a long ways on from the November general election that is a distant memory at this stage. The spotlight has relentlessly and understandably been on what President Trump’s tariffs and more might translate into for this exposed island.
That said, what has been termed a “stalled level of housing output far below what is needed” suggests that government targets for 2025 probably will not be met. There may be global turmoil; contemporaneously, for thousands of aggrieved singles, couples and families, home ownership, and the stability that emanates therefrom, is their paramount concern. One cabinet source, reflecting on the paucity of housing starts, opined that the heat would be squarely on the government if clear and present danger from the White House weren’t looming as menacingly on the horizon.
Normalcy won’t be suspended indefinitely. The severe crisis has not abated. The inordinate cost and short supply of housing – together with other growing pains resulting from a rapid, welcome expansion of the Irish population – persist and are not easily amenable to resolution.
Larry Donnelly is a Boston born and educated attorney, a Law Lecturer at the University of Galway and a regular media contributor on politics, current affairs and law in Ireland and the US. Twitter/X: @LarryPDonnelly
