In general, how would you describe your opinion of Pope Francis?

Positive (61%) – "He advocated compassion, and his views toward treatment of poor, underprivileged or oppressed people were consistent with the basic tenets of all major religions - that we treat other people as we would want to be treated."

• "Within the limits of being a human and of trying to steer an ancient, notoriously corrupt institution, he did a bang up job. It was good to see him pushing the church and Catholics to focus more on being of service and socioeconomic issues than moral bible thumping. It restored my faith (somewhat) in organized religion to see him vocally condemning the genocide in Palestine. Again, not saying he wasn’t without his short comings. But with him gone, I’m deeply concerned there will be a conservative backlash and that the good works and focus on service (including environmentalism) that was slowly being rekindled in the Catholic Church will be snuffed out in favor of focusing on being anti abortion and anti LGBTQ"

"Pope Francis didn’t shy away from saying hard things if it was the truth. People, Catholics especially, had a lot of opinions about things he said and did being too progressive or not progressive enough. He was true to Church teachings while treating people with compassion and seeing people as individuals made in the image of God though, which is so beautiful and necessary to me, especially in today’s world where we so easily group people as the evil “them” who’s out to get you, making it easier to dislike and disparage each other."

• "As a Catholic, I immediately have strong feelings for the earthly leader of our Church. Seeing his passing has been tough, but I'm excited for the future of the Church. He was one of the most "human" Popes we've had in a long time. He will be greatly missed."

"As a non-Catholic (and generally agnostic person), I appreciated Pope Francis's push for social justice issues and especially the mention of hope and acceptance in his final speech - "On this day, I would like all of us to hope anew and to revive our trust in others, including those who are different than ourselves, or who come from distant lands, bringing unfamiliar customs, ways of life and ideas!""

• "Regardless of who was elected or what policies or perspectives he presented, a group will be upset. Leading over a billion people means someone will be unsatisfied. He stayed true to Catholic teachings while changing the tone of how the Catholic Church approaches various topics. We look at it through a very American-lens, which is not the truth for most people in the world."

Neutral (17%) – "I did not agree with some of the things he subscribed to, notably, open borders. Countries should have controlled borders and immigration policies."

• "While he was more progressive than some popes, he still didn't address the rampant abuse or make any real change within the church."

Negative (14%) – "I can't comment on his personal character as I'd never met him, but as a religious leader, he missed the mark. His teachings and stances weren't biblically based and it seemed like he aspired more to social activism than religious leadership, which isn't a bad thing but then...don't lead a religious group. Church leaders bear the weight of having to share the full truth of the gospel regardless of what that does to their 'power' or social status. It isn't a buffet, taking things you like and leaving those you don't or taking specific teachings out of context so they fit the narrative. I think the former pope did a lot of that during his time and I'm disappointed in the path he led the Catholic church down. We all have the opportunity to share the truth in love with those we meet but it seemed like he cared more about how he was perceived and whether he was loved back."

• "I was raised a catholic but due to changes in the church, such as use of latin in the service, contraceptive use, and their 'gay' priests, dropped out. Some of those changes are things Francis seemed to continue along liberal political lines rather than biblical ones."

Unsure/other (8%) – "As a Protestant Christian, I disagree with Pope Francis on many things (and also on things that have nothing to do with me being Protestant). I also have a lot of respect for what he represents to the Catholic faith and can respect his time of service. I don't know enough about him as a person, however, to really feel like I understand his character and opinions. I think I can respect many things about him without being in agreement with him."