‘People are praying for him already.’ Beaufort churches field calls on Pope Francis’ death
Beaufort County Catholic churches have been fielding a surprising number of calls since the death of Pope Francis, who died Monday morning, according to Monsignor Ronald Cellini.
Cellini is the pastor at St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church in Bluffton but serves as the dean of the Beaufort Deanery, which is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston.
Cellini was at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Lady’s Island Monday morning to conduct a funeral. As he prepared to enter the church for the service, Cellini shared that he had been surprised by how many people had already called local churches to to talk about the death of the head of the Catholic church. Many Catholics, said Cellini, feel as if the pope’s death was a “gift of relief.”
“People are relieved his painful process of dying has come to an end,” Cellini said.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, announced the death of Pope Francis at 9:45 a.m. Monday. He was 88 and died at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta. The Pope was admitted to the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic Hospital on Friday, February 14, 2025, after suffering from a bout of bronchitis for several days His situation gradually worsened, and his doctors diagnosed bilateral pneumonia on Feb. 18 and he spent 38 days in hospital.
St. Francis by the Sea Catholic Church on Hilton Head set up a memorial to the Pope in the narthex but the offices were closed.
Celini, the local monsignor, said Pope Francis was “was known for his humanity.” “His personal interaction with people,” he said.
Even in his last days when he was bed-ridden, Cellini noted, Francis asked to be pushed around St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome in a wheelchair so he could interact with people.
Cellini noted that Francis, whose progressive bent did not sit well with conservatives, was controversial.
Still, he noted, “He touched a lot of people — not all of them — but a lot of them.”
Beaufort County churches will have ceremonies to commemorate his death, Cellini said, but none had been scheduled as of Monday morning.
“People are praying for him already,”Cellini said.
This story was originally published April 21, 2025 at 1:27 PM.
