The Theological Legacy of Pope Francis: between Self-Discovery, Institutional Dialectics, and Incarnation

Abstract

This article examines the theological legacy of Pope Francis through the articulation of three axes: (1) the concept of legacy proposed by Marlon Reikdal, understood as a process of self-discovery, commitment, and dedication to the collective; (2) the dialectic between the preservation of tradition and the urgency of reform, analyzed by João Décio Passos; and (3) the christological core of the pontificate, expressed in the themes of incarnation, kénosis, mercy, and hope, based on the autobiography Esperança and the Bull A esperança não decepciona. The study argues that Francis’s pontificate constitutes a humanizing theological praxis, in which tradition is treated as a living source, reality as a theological locus, and mercy as the concrete expression of divine love. It concludes that Francis’s legacy is an embodied theology, marked by proximity, legitimate reform, and the centrality of the human as the place of revelation.

Keywords: Pope Francis. Legacy. Kénosis. Incarnation. Hope.