Scottish church leaders have paid tribute to Pope Francis following his death on April 21.

The leader of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church passed away on Easter Monday, aged 88, the day after delivering the traditional Easter message in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican.

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Dr Shaw Paterson, extended his condolences to the Catholic Church in Scotland. He said: “We recall with gratitude the hospitality extended by His Holiness to representatives of the Church of Scotland and also the occasion of the Ecumenical Pilgrimage of Peace made by Pope Francis to South Sudan in the company of the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 2023. In recalling his contribution to Christian witness, we hear renewed the call made by His Holiness in Laudato si’ to care for the earth as our common home, and in Fratelli tutti to discover the presence of Christ in each human being.

“May the blessed memory of Francis continue to serve as an example to the faithful people of God in our shared pilgrimage and in our common task of caring for God’s creation. May he rest in peace.”

The most senior Catholic in Scotland, Archbishop Leo Cushley, said he was ‘deeply saddened’ by the Pope’s death: “He shared Christ’s mercy and compassion to all, especially the poor and the vulnerable. He emphasised our duty to protect God’s creation for future generations and he worked tirelessly, often through illness and infirmity, to seek unity in a divided world.

“Through the synods held during his Pontificate he wished us to learn again to listen to each other as children of God and heirs to the same life of grace. He called for peace on earth: may the living Lord now grant him the peace of eternal rest.”

The Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Most Rev Mark Strange, said his thoughts and prayers were with all in the Roman Catholic Church. “(Pope Francis’s) generosity and love for all of God’s Creation and his willingness to be open and approachable allowed him to get close to people, and to love and be loved by so many. The joy on the faces in St Peter’s Square yesterday as he gave the Easter Blessing will be something dearly held as the mourning begins for this remarkable servant of God.”

The Primus added: “When the Anglican Primates met in Rome last year, he spent time talking to us, listened to the questions we asked and he answered us. This positive dialogue encouraged us all and we felt able to share with him our thoughts, as he did with us. This was clearly one of his gifts that enabled such conversations to take place between many of the world’s churches. May he now Rest in Peace.”

The Edinburgh Interfaith Association also extended its condolences to Scotland’s Catholics. Chair, Professor Joe Goldblatt, said: “(Pope Francis’s) life work is an inspiration to all people who wish to grow and enrich interfaith relations through education, understanding, respect, and compassion. His lessons of caring for the poorest and most vulnerable in society are those all of us should aspire to emulate, regardless of our faith belief as well as those of no faith.”