Pope Francis : Introduction to the Person

Image Credentials: Image Title: Pope Francis: Introduction to the Person Source: AI-Generated Image (Grok, xAI) Date: April 2025 Attribution: Created by AI-generated imagery (Grok, xAI), and it does not depict a real-world scene.

Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2013 until his death. He was the first pope from the Society of Jesus (the Jesuit Order), the first from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere, and the first born or raised outside of Europe since the 8th-century Syrian pope Gregory III.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bergoglio was inspired to join the Jesuits in 1958 after recovering from severe illness. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1969; from 1973 to 1979, he was the Jesuit provincial superior in Argentina. He became the archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998 and was created a cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II.

Following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on 28 February 2013, a papal conclave elected Bergoglio as his successor on 13 March. He chose Francis as his papal name in honour of Saint Francis of Assisi. Throughout his public life, Francis was noted for his humility, emphasis on God’s mercy, international visibility as pope, concern for the poor, and commitment to interreligious dialogue. He was known for having a less formal approach to the papacy than his predecessors by, for instance, choosing to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae (House of St. Martha) guest house rather than in the papal apartments of the Apostolic Palace used by previous popes.

Francis made women full members of dicasteries in the Roman Curia. He maintained that the Catholic Church should be more sympathetic toward LGBTQ people and stated that although blessings of same-sex unions are not permitted, the individuals can be blessed as long as blessings are not given in a liturgical context. Francis was a critic of unbridled capitalism, consumerism, and overdevelopment; he made action on climate change a leading focus of his papacy. He was widely interpreted as denouncing the death penalty as intrinsically evil, stating that the Catholic Church is committed to its abolition. In international diplomacy, Francis criticized the rise of right-wing populism, called for the decriminalization of homosexuality, helped to restore full diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba, negotiated a deal with the People’s Republic of China to define how much influence the Communist Party had in appointing Chinese bishops, and supported the cause of refugees. He called the protection of migrants a “duty of civilisation” and criticised anti-immigration politics, including those of U.S. President Donald Trump. In 2022, he apologized for the Church’s role in the “cultural genocide” of the Canadian Indigenous peoples. Francis convened the Synod on Synodality, which was described as the culmination of his papacy and the most important event in the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council.

Francis died at the age of 88 in the early morning of 21 April 2025, on Easter Monday, after suffering a stroke. In the weeks before his death, he had been making fewer public appearances so that he could be treated for chronic lung disease, including a respiratory crisis and pneumonia. He made his last public appearance the day before, on Easter Sunday.

Pope Francis
Bishop of Rome
Church	Catholic Church
Papacy began	13 March 2013
Papacy ended	21 April 2025
Predecessor	Benedict XVI
Successor	TBD
Previous post(s)	Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus in Argentina (1973–1979) Auxiliary Bishop of Buenos Aires (1992–1997) Titular Bishop of Auca (1992–1997) Archbishop of Buenos Aires (1998–2013) Cardinal Priest of San Roberto Bellarmino (2001–2013) Ordinary for the Faithful of the Eastern Rites in Argentina (1998–2013) President of the Argentine Episcopal Conference (2005–2011)
Orders
Ordination	13 December 1969 by Ramón José Castellano
Consecration	27 June 1992 by Antonio Quarracino
Created cardinal	21 February 2001 by John Paul II
Personal details
Born	Jorge Mario Bergoglio 17 December 1936 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Died	21 April 2025 (aged 88) Domus Sanctae Marthae, Vatican City
Denomination	Catholic
Residence	Domus Sanctae Marthae, Vatican City
Education	Maximum College of St. Joseph Philosophical and Theological Faculty of San Miguel Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology
Motto	Miserando atque eligendo
Signature
Coat of arms
Ordination history
History Priestly ordination Ordained by Ramón José Castellano Date 13 December 1969 Episcopal consecration Principal consecrator Antonio Quarracino Co-consecrators Ubaldo Calabresi and Emilio Ogñénovich Date 27 June 1992 Place Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral, Buenos Aires Cardinalate Elevated by Pope John Paul II Date 21 February 2001

References

• Allen Jr., John L. (2013). Francis: A New Pope, A New Church? London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-241-96891-7.

• Vatican News (21 April 2025). “Pope Francis dies at 88 after stroke and heart failure”. Vatican News. Retrieved 21 April 2025.

• Farrell, Kevin (2025). “Statement on the Passing of His Holiness Pope Francis.” Holy See Press Office. Retrieved 21 April 2025.

• Wills, Garry (2014). The Future of the Catholic Church with Pope Francis. New York: Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-02610-2.

• Burke, Daniel (2013). “Who is Pope Francis? A look at the first Jesuit pope.” CNN. Retrieved 14 March 2013.

• O’Loughlin, Michael J. (2019). Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics, and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear. Broadleaf Books.

• McElwee, Joshua J. (2018). “Francis changes Vatican law to give laity more say in choosing bishops.” National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 12 October 2018.

• Francis, Pope (2015). Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

• BBC News (2014). “Pope Francis urges global abolition of death penalty”. BBC. Retrieved 23 October 2014.

• Pullella, Philip (2016). “Pope criticizes Trump, says building walls ‘not Christian’.” Reuters. Retrieved 18 February 2016.

• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (2022). “Pope Francis apologizes for residential school abuses, calls them ‘cultural genocide’.” CBC News. Retrieved 25 July 2022.

• Sandro Magister (2018). “China and the Vatican: The Secret Deal.” L’Espresso. Retrieved 27 September 2018.

• Synod.va (2023). “Synod on Synodality: Final Document and Summary Report.” The Vatican Synod Office. Retrieved 29 October 2023.

• San Lorenzo de Almagro (2025). “Adeus, Francisco: homenagem ao sócio n.º 88235.” San Lorenzo Official Website. Retrieved 21 April 2025.

• Rollins, James (2009). The Doomsday Key. William Morrow Publishing. ISBN 978-0-06-123140-0.

• Berry, Steve (2005). The Third Secret. Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-345-47615-3.

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