Doug Hinderer takes a moment to reflect on the passing of Pope Francis, a man he calls both Holy Father and spiritual dad to the world. In a beautiful twist of providence, his oldest daughter Katie is in Rome… right in St. Peter’s Square as the world receives the news.
You can check out the whole hour where Doug also talks about Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation about marriage, “Amoris Laetitia.”
💬 Doug sets the tone with a mix of grief and hope, reminding us that even though we mourn the loss of our shepherd, we rejoice in the promise of Heaven. Then, he talks to Katie for what feels like a sacred father-daughter conversation, reporting from the “arms of St. Peter’s.”
Katie’s Roman Dispatch: On the Ground at St. Peter’s
Katie is literally in the square as the Church gathers to honor Pope Francis. The feeling is a mix of sorrow, peace, and a strange, beautiful unity… like the bittersweet feel of a family wake.
She describes:
-A crowd full of pilgrims, press, and prayer
-An impromptu Rosary breaking out among strangers
-Candles and flowers at the obelisk
-A community that feels like one giant grieving family
She’s no stranger to moments like this: she was also in Rome during the final Holy Week of John Paul II. Now, decades later, she finds herself witnessing the same sacred transition… twice in a lifetime.
✝️ A Quiet Passing and Final Signs
Katie was in Assisi, of all places, when she found out. On a train headed to visit the body of St. Francis, she spotted a headline on someone’s phone: The Pope has died. The news traveled car to car like wildfire in every language.
And yet, the signs had been there. She recounts:
-How Pope Francis was visibly frail during Holy Week
-He skipped Palm Sunday Mass and the Wednesday audience
-At Easter Vigil, he was wheeled quietly past the crowd to pray… his condition clear, his mission seemingly finished
-His final blessing on Easter Sunday felt like a goodbye.
❤️ A Pope Who Smelled Like His Sheep
Doug and Katie remember Pope Francis as the Pope of Mercy, the one who famously told his brother priests to “smell like the sheep.” He welcomed the homeless into the square. He cared about the forgotten and overlooked. He didn’t follow a mold; he followed Jesus.
One touching moment was when Katie’s cab driver moved her pickup time early and simply texted: “Because our dad died.” That’s how Romans saw him: not as a figurehead, but a father.
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