“Francis’ Striking Simplicity Set Him Apart in Meetings with the Pope”

Eeklo – The Orthodox religious leader of Benelux had several opportunities to meet Pope Francis, primarily through repeated personal interactions with Athenagoras Peckstadt of Eeklo. “Compared to his predecessors, Francis’ simplicity was very striking,” recalled Athenagoras Peckstadt.

Metropolitan Athenagoras Peckstadt used the moment to reflect on Pope Francis following the Pontiff’s passing. He emphasized the Pope’s humble nature, noting that unlike his predecessors, Francis preferred modest accommodations over the grand Vatican apartments.

Peckstadt highlighted that Pope Francis engaged meaningfully in discussions concerning Orthodox traditions — especially on the subjects of remarriage after divorce and the potential for a married priesthood, though the Catholic Church ultimately rejected the latter reform. According to Peckstadt, Francis embodied the role of a reformer who focused his leadership on caring for ordinary people rather than enforcing rigid dogma.

“The man was 88 and had a good life, so given his state of health, his death is not entirely unexpected,”

said Metropolitan Athenagoras Peckstadt in reaction to Pope Francis’s death.

“I then attracted Francis’ attention by talking about the possibility within the Orthodox Church of being able to remarry after the failure of the marriage. He thought that was a very good thing. He was also an advocate of married priesthood, but he could not realise that within his Catholic Church.”

The Metropolitan also had audiences with Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI. Yet, he notes that Pope Francis stood out for his modest demeanor:

“He received us in the refectory where cardinals eat in the house of Santa Marta in the Vatican, while his predecessors offered us a meal in the private apartments at the top of the Vatican.”

“If Benedict was the great theologian who determined the doctrine of the Church, then Francis was a practitioner who stood up for the man in the street, for the good in the world and not so much for the theoretical.”

“I will remember him as a man who wanted to reform things, not least his own status as pope. He did not see himself as a supreme prelate, but as the shepherd of the city of Rome. He did not see his universal role as a ministry as an exercise of power.”

In the weeks ahead, speculation will swirl about who might succeed Pope Francis. Metropolitan Peckstadt considers the cardinal of Manila, Philippines, to be a serious contender.

“During the synod he made a deep impression with his capacities as moderator. But also the Secretary of State of the Vatican, Pietro Parolin, and the Congolese cardinal, Fridolin Ambongo, the archbishop of Kinshasa, are mentioned. It is sometimes said that one goes into conclave as ‘papabile’, as a possible pope, but comes out as a cardinal. What is certain is that it will be neither a Benedict nor a Francis.”

Understanding the Orthodox-Catholic Context in Benelux

The Benelux countries — Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg — historically lean toward Catholicism, though religious observance has declined in recent decades. Today, about 52% of Belgians identify as Catholic, while in the Netherlands the figure drops to 20%. Orthodox Christians represent a 2–3% minority, largely consisting of Romanian, Greek, and Russian communities.

Since 2013, Metropolitan Athenagoras Peckstadt has led the Orthodox Church in the Benelux. He reports to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and works actively to foster closer Catholic-Orthodox relations in the region.

During his papacy from 2013 to 2023, Pope Francis made strides toward ecumenical reconciliation. His historic 2014 meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew I