"I always had a hard time understanding how he could keep up such a demanding work schedule," admitted his compatriot, Cardinal Fernández.POPE LEO XIV
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A hard-working Piedmontese who never took “a whole day off.” This is the portrait of Pope Francis painted by Argentine Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández as he celebrated Mass on the sixth day of the “novendiales” — the nine days of traditional prayer for a deceased pope — in St. Peter's Basilica with the College of Cardinals on May 1, 2025. The cardinal who knew the future pope in Argentina made a parallel with the day's feast of St. Joseph the Worker.
On Thursday, a public holiday in the Vatican, the cardinals did not hold a general congregation, but they gathered at the end of the day for this celebration dedicated to prayer for the Roman Curia.
Cardinal Fernández, who presided over the Mass, focused his homily on the feast of St. Joseph the Worker and International Workers' Day, recalling that workers were “so dear to Pope Francis.”
Inspired by Pope Francis' fight for “the dignity of work,” the former prefect — his position, like almost all the Curia posts, has been suspended since the vacancy of the See — castigated the “false meritocracy” according to which “only those who have succeeded in life have merit.”
He noted the contrast between “a person born into a good family who has been able to increase their wealth, lead a comfortable life with a nice house, a car, and vacations abroad” and a person who “did not have the good fortune to be born into the same environment” and who “struggles to survive” despite the sweat they sacrifice.
“It seems that those who have inherited so much are more worthy than those who have worked hard all their lives without being able to save anything, or even buy a small house,” protested Cardinal Fernández, seeing in this social judgment ‘cruelty and hideous vanity.’
”Must those who are born with fewer opportunities simply survive? Is there no chance for them to have a job that allows them to grow, develop, and create something better for their children?“ asked the 62-year-old cardinal, invoking "Christian thinking.”
"He never took a whole day off"
Echoing the Pope's own description of himself, Cardinal Fernández described Francis as “a descendant of Piedmontese immigrants who did not come [to Argentina] with the desire to be assisted, but with a great willingness to roll up their sleeves.”
He presented Pope Francis as “a worker” who “lived his mission throughout his life with great effort, passion, and commitment.”
“He didn't just work in the morning, with meetings, audiences, celebrations, and encounters, but also all afternoon,” said his former collaborator. "I always had a hard time understanding how he could keep up such a demanding work schedule, given his age and the fact that he suffered from several illnesses."
The cardinal particularly praised his “heroic” gesture of visiting a prison on Holy Thursday, just four days before his death.
“We can't take him as an example, because he never took a few days off,” joked the theologian. ”In Buenos Aires, in the summer, if you couldn't find a priest, you would certainly find him. When he was in Argentina, he never went out to dinner, to the theater, for a walk or to see a movie; he never took a whole day off. Whereas we, being normal, couldn't avoid this,” he recalled.
Addressing the employees of the Roman Curia, Cardinal Fernández emphasized that Pope Francis' life was “an encouragement to live [their] work with generosity” and to “sacrifice themselves in their commitments.”
"His daily work was his response to God's love; it was an expression of his concern for the good of others,” he reflected.
"Returning to work was part of his therapy. He never exposed himself to danger,” Doctor Sergio Alfieri said, adding in the Corriere: “Today, I have the distinct feeling that he felt the need to do a number of things before he died.”
Love for St. Joseph
On the day when the Catholic Church celebrates St. Joseph the Worker, Cardinal Fernández also recalled the Pope's attachment to this saint: “When Pope Francis had a big problem, he would place a piece of paper with a prayer under the image of [sleeping] St. Joseph," he recalled.
Pope Francis' final effort to be with his flock
