In front of hundreds of world leaders attending the funeral ofPopeFrancison Saturday, Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re called for care for migrants, an end to wars, and action on global climate change — Francis' favourite political themes.
Re repeated one of thepope'sstrongest criticismsof US President Donald Trump, with Trump himself present in the crowd, by calling to "build bridges, not walls".
Trump and thepopeexchanged criticisms over a decade, mostly related to thepope's plea for compassion for migrants, a group Trump has repeatedly sought to deport.
Re's sermon, heard by a global audience of millions, contained a strong political message for the national leaders and a strong internal message to the world's Catholic cardinals.
To the about 135 Catholic cardinals who will soon be tasked with enteringa secret conclaveto choose the nextpope, it was also a possible roadmap for how they should start their deliberations.
In spiritual language, the 91-year-old prelate gave a simple message: there is no going back.
Francis,the first pontiff from Latin Americaand one who garnered global attention during his 12-year papacy, had been "attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church."
"Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today's challenges,PopeFrancis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time," said Re.
He touched people's hearts, said the cardinal, "in a direct and immediate way."
Francis,popesince 2013, died on Monday at age 88.
His funeral on Saturday, which also included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and some50 other world leaders, was a carefully choreographed affair, with Latin chants,strictly organised seating, and use of ancient Catholic rites.
Re invoked a criticism Francis levied against Trumpin 2016, when the real estate mogul was making his first run for president. Trump, thepopesaid, was "not Christian" because of his views on immigration.
"A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian," said Francis at the time. "This is not in the gospel."
Trump responded then, "For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful."
More recently, thepopehad called Trump's immigration crackdown in his second term a "disgrace".
Re also cited a major document written by Francis in 2015 on climate change, which was intended to influence discussions at the 2016 Paris climate conference, and visits by thepopeto the Mediterranean islands of Lampedusa and Lesbos, where he met migrants in detention camps.
There is no clear frontrunner to succeed Francis aspope, but there is a history of sermons at papal funerals influencing conclaves.
At the funeral ofPopeJohn Paul II in 2005, the sermon was delivered by German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who, eleven days later, was elected asPopeBenedict XVI.
Re is 91 years old, cannot enter the conclave and is not a papal contender.
But he suggested the cardinals might take a lesson from thesome 250,000 peoplewho paid their final respects to Francis in St Peter's Basilica in the three days before the funeral.
"The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate ofPopeFrancis touched minds and hearts," said the cardinal.