The Most Influential Person In AIB This Week Is Pope Francis

Pope Francis, also known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was born on December 17, 1936, in Argentina to Italian immigrants. He is the leader of the Catholic Church, the bishop of Rome, and the ruler of the Vatican City State.

Francis is the first pope from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere, and the first pope from outside of Europe since Gregory III, a Syrian who ruled in the eighth century. Francis is also the first pope to be a member of the Society of Jesus.

.He completed his high school education to become a chemical technician. He had a serious case of pneumonia when he was around 21 years old, which necessitated the removal of a portion of his right lung. After a brief career in the food-processing sector, he felt called to the priesthood. He joined the Jesuit novitiate in 1958 and later pursued academics, obtaining a licentiate (master’s degree equivalent) in philosophy in the province of Buenos Aires and studying humanities in Santiago, Chile.

He pursued a theology degree while teaching literature and psychology in high school after graduating. He was ordained a priest in 1969, made his final Jesuit vows in 1973, and later served as superior (leader) of the Argentinean Jesuit province (1973–79).

Lieut. Gen. Jorge Rafael Videla’s military coup in Argentina in 1976 occurred during Pope Francis’ time as the country’s Jesuit leader. Between 10,000 and 30,000 persons were said to be kidnapped, tortured, and generally executed by the military and the police during the subsequent Dirty War, which lasted between 1976 and 1983. He was claimed to have shielded several persons from the federal authorities, even assisting some of them in leaving the country.

While working as a seminary instructor and rector in the 1980s, Bergoglio also attended graduate theological school in Germany. He was named an auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires in 1992, appointed archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998, and made a cardinal in 2001 (a position he retained until his elevation to the papacy).

He developed a reputation for humility in the public eye during Argentina’s economic crisis, which began in the late 1990s and culminated in 2002 with the swift devaluation of the country’s currency. As a bishop, he chose to live in a modest downtown apartment rather than the archbishop’s residence and preferred to travel on foot or by public transportation or
rather than in a chauffeured limousine.

He was elected the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church on March 13, 2013, after the resignation of Benedict XVI based on advanced age and declining health. Francis’ papacy has come to be defined by the values of poverty, mercy, and joy.

Bergoglio selected the name “Francis” upon being elected on the fifth ballot. He chose his papal name ” Francis” in honor of St. Francis of Assisi (1181/82-1226), who led a life of selfless service to the poor, and in remembrance of St. Francis Xavier (1506-52), a founding member of the Jesuits,