WEST ROXBURY -- On the evening of April 23, Maureen Noyse went to her home parish of St. Theresa of Avila in West Roxbury to pray for "the best we ever had."

She was referring to Pope Francis, who died on April 21 at the age of 88.

"A great loss," Noyse told The Pilot. "He touched everybody in how he felt about everything in life. A great example for the Catholic Church, I believe. Accepted everybody, whoever they are."

The world would be a better place, she said, "if everybody felt the way that he did about all people."

Noyse was joined by hundreds of mourners who packed the church for a memorial Mass for Pope Francis. Noyse said that the filled church was a testament to how beloved Pope Francis was.

The Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Richard G. Henning, who departed to Rome for the pope's funeral the next day. Similar Masses were celebrated by Bishop Robert Hennessey at Immaculate Conception Parish in Lowell on April 24 and by Bishop Cristiano Barbosa at St. James Parish in Stoughton on April 25.

In his homily, Archbishop Henning compared "our Peter" -- Pope Francis -- with St. Peter healing the beggar at the temple gate.

"Francis lived a life of very great simplicity, even poverty," the archbishop said. "He could not fix the world's problems with money. He could not dominate the problems of the world or force people to be better or stop fighting. But as the first Peter said, 'I can do this: In the name of Jesus Christ, arise and walk. Be healed. Be reconciled. Be restored. Stand up.'"

Archbishop Henning recounted some of Pope Francis's most famous sayings: That the church should be a field hospital offering healing to those in need, that the Gospel should be lived with joy and hope, that service is key to the Christian life, and that humanity should be "fratelli tutti" -- brothers and sisters all. Those words, the archbishop said, are Pope Francis's legacy.

"It's that summons to compassion, especially in the midst of human suffering," he said. "For also like the prophets of old, Francis has continuously asked us to look at the world with new eyes, with those eyes of faith, and to perceive those who may be overlooked or left behind, who do not necessarily benefit from the workings of those in authority."

Archbishop Henning also thought of Pope Francis on Easter Sunday. He celebrated Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, which was full of worshipers and joyous music. After that, he went to "a place where there was somewhat more darkness": Boston Children's Hospital, where he visited with the families of sick children.

"It was a remarkable few hours visiting those rooms," he said. "As you can imagine, it's certainly difficult to see when the young suffer from illness. It's just as difficult to see the fear and the agony in their parents who want nothing more than to protect and to love their children."

It made him think of Pope Francis's call for the faithful to "walk with people when they need it the most," at times when words cannot do justice to their anguish.

"This is not something we give to them," Archbishop Henning said. "It's something we experience together. For when we're with those who are suffering, when we walk with them, when we share in their suffering, we are made more human, more capable of love and service to others. This too is a key element of the kind of compassion that our Holy Father has called us to, to that human dimension, person to person, particularly in a world where too much of what we do is before a screen."

He expressed his gratitude for all who had come to pray for Pope Francis, and acknowledged that they came to Mass with their own fears and sufferings. He told them to listen to the words of St. Peter and the legacy of "this other Peter."

"Do not be afraid," Archbishop Henning said. "Know that the one you thought was lost has been restored to life. And in this, find your hope, your purpose, your meaning. Feel in your heart the truth of the love which is poured out at this altar. See him in the breaking of the bread. And allow his spirit to make you a bold and open proclaimer of the truth of his love and the truth of his healing and merciful reconciliation."

The Prayers of the Faithful were offered for the late pope and the College of Cardinals, who will meet to vote for his successor. The assembly was also led in prayer for subjects that were central to Pope Francis's life and ministry: Care for creation, peace throughout the world, and "the poor, the sick, the imprisoned, the forgotten."

Luz Lopez, a social worker who attended the Mass, said she was saddened by Pope Francis's death but hopes that his legacy will endure.

"He represents the essence of what we do," she said. "Working for social justice, working for marginalized people. And he did that. He did that with his example and his words."

Archdiocese of Boston Evangelization Consultant Jared Cowell and his wife Emilia saw Pope Francis's televised Easter address, his last public appearance before his death.

"I was really pleased with it," Emilia said. "I had shared on social media his words about calling for peace in Gaza. I thought it was really strong."

She said she and her husband were "shocked" by the news of his death. At first, they thought it was a hoax. When they understood it was real, they immediately prayed for him.

"He always struck me as a man of the people, so to say," Jared said. "He used to exhort priests to smell like their flock, and I think he really exuded that. There were no airs about him. You saw what you got."