Bergoglio

Jorge Mario Bergoglio, born 17 December 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is the head of the Roman Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State. He was elected pope on 13 March 2013, taking the name Francis. He is the first pope from the Americas and the first Jesuit pope.

Bergoglio joined the Society of Jesus in 1958 and was ordained a priest in 1969. He held various roles in the Jesuit order and in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, emphasizing pastoral care and spiritual formation.

In 1998 he was named Archbishop of Buenos Aires by Pope John Paul II, and in 2001 he was created a cardinal by the same pope. He played a prominent role in the Argentine Church during the early transition years.

As pope, Francis has prioritized humility, social justice, and care for the poor. He has spoken out on poverty, migration, and the environment, and authored the encyclical Laudato si’ (2015). He has pursued reforms of the Vatican bureaucracy and promoted interfaith dialogue.

His papacy has drawn praise for openness and reform, while also facing criticism over governance and the handling of sexual abuse cases within the church and various internal matters. He remains a central figure in contemporary Catholicism.