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The death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday marked an historic moment for the Catholic Church and the world.
Within minutes of the Vatican's official announcement of the pope's unexpected death, Australian Catholic University's experts in theology, liturgy, history and Catholicism provided impressive commentary and analysis across global TV networks, print media, radio and online publications.
The unprecedented coverage across hundreds of media outlets included the opportunity for our experts to join TV commentators during the live broadcast of Pope Francis' funeral on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Channel 7, and Nine Network Australia.
ACU experts were valued for their expertise and insight and became regular commentators on every Australian TV network and international broadcasters including the BBC. They also contributed in-depth explainers, obituaries and reflections to The Conversation, ABC Online, the Australian Financial Review and Eureka Street, and were interviewed by journalists from Australian Associated Press, News Corp, Australian Community Media, Seven West Media, Religion News Service and American agency Associated Press.
Professor Clare Johnson, director of the ACU Centre for Liturgy, provided extensive live commentary for the ABC's broadcast of the Pope's funeral. She was also interviewed by ABC Radio, Radio National, ABC News, The Today Show, Sunrise, Vision Christian Media, SBS, and 4BC, discussing the Pope's humanitarian leadership, and explaining the liturgical details of the Solemn funeral Mass.
Associate Professor Joel Hodge, national Head of the School of Theology, co-hosted A Current Affair with Deborah Night as part of the Nine Network's live coverage of the Pope's funeral. On live TV, radio and podcasts Assoc. Prof. Hodge reflected on the Pope's legacy and his leadership of the Catholic Church across the world.
Associate Professor Darius von Guttner, historian with the Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, joined 7News live coverage of Pope Francis' funeral for a four-hour special broadcast. He also wrote a fascinating and detailed explainer on the process of the Conclave and the top contenders for the next pope. He also wrote an opinion piece for the Australian Financial Review on Pope Francis' journey to becoming Francis I.
Dr Sandie Cornish, senior lecturer in the School of Theology, told Australian Associated Press the Pope had a special concern for the poor and marginalised, saying his sense of social justice informed much of his leadership.
"He's been very much a person who values face-to-face, embodied encounter, not talking about these issues in the abstract, but remembering the faces of the people who experience these issues," she told AAP.
Dr Claudio Betti, director of ACU's Rome Campus, provided daily updates for The Today Show, and extracts of his interviews were syndicated across Nine's radio network. He also appeared on Sunrise and provided commentary across ABC Radio.
"Pope Francis has been trying desperately throughout his pontificate to move away from a world that is continuously praising the 'I', the me, the ego, towards a new 'we'. And that is one of the main drivers of this papacy," Dr Betti said.
"He was a prophet of peace in a world that talks a completely different language."
Associate Professor Maeve Heaney, director of the Xavier Centre for Theological Formation, was a special guest on ABC Melbourne's Conversation Hour reflecting on Pope Francis' work on the inclusion of women in the Church and his legacy.
"Pope Francis was also loved by people outside the Catholic Church. There was something about his care for the poor, and people on the margins, and his commitment to climate change," Associate Professor Heaney said.
"The most important thing will be his commitment to synodality, which means journeying together. He tried to help the Church shape that in new ways."
Reverend Dr James McEvoy, a senior lecturer in theology and priest of the Archdiocese of Adelaide, spoke with National Radio News and ABC Radio Adelaide about the Pope's humble life, choosing not to live in the papal suite.
"Francis' humility was extraordinary. He lived in a guesthouse in a simple room. I've stayed in those rooms myself. That's where he chose to live instead of the Papal suite and lived out of that humble approach to live. His faith is the heart of everything for him," Dr McEvoy said.
Dr Antonia Pizzey, deputy head of the School of Theology, spoke with ABC Radio and ABC Online on how the Pope's Jesuit spirituality shaped his papacy, and the impact his death will have on the Year of Jubilee.
"I think his focus on mission will be part of his legacy to us. He spoke to everyone and said mission is something that all Catholics are called on to do, and it doesn't mean doing something extraordinary though it could be that, but it means actually acting in love to everyone. He made it very simple," Dr Pizzey told ABC NSW.
Adjunct Professor Fr Frank Brennan was interviewed widely across broadcast media, sharing his experience of meeting Pope Francis and their Jesuit brotherhood. He told 10 News about the time he presented Pope Francis with a bottle of wine produced by the Jesuits in South Australia.
"I was able to present the pope with a bottle of the Sevenhill red wine from Clare Valley, because the first Jesuits who came to Australia were Austrian and the first thing they did was to plant the vineyard," Fr Brennan said.
"He said, 'Ah - aqua sacra (or Holy Water), thank you!'. We were surrounded by young married couples and we all had a great laugh together."
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