Jorge Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1936, the oldest of five children. He attended an elementary school run by the Salesians of Don Bosco, then attended a technical secondary school where he focused in chemistry. After pursuing priesthood for three years in the diocesan seminary, Jorge changed course and entered the Society of Jesus in 1958. Following his 1969 ordination, Jorge was named a Jesuit provincial in 1973, finished his doctorate in 1986, and became auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires in 1992. St. John Paul II promoted Jorge to head honcho there in 1998, then made him a cardinal in 2001. 

From a young age, he’s been an avid fan of soccer -- specifically the San Lorenzo de Almagro football club -- tango dancing, and G.K. Chesterton, while also holding a special devotion to Our Lady Untier of Knots. 

Elected on the fifth ballot following the resignation of Benedict XVI, Pope Francis became the first Jesuit pope in history, the first to hail both from the Americas and the Southern Hemisphere, and the first non-European pope since the Syrian Gregory III (731). It was also the first time since Pope Lando in 913 that a pope bore a name not previously held by a Successor of Peter. Despite jokes from fellow cardinals that he should take “Clement XV” and settle the score with the pontiff who had suppressed the Jesuits, he styled himself “Francis” after the great St. Francis of Assisi. 

In his time as pope, Francis has written a pair of encyclicals (Lumen Fidei and Laudato Si) and four apostolic exhortations (Evangelii Gaudium, Amoris Laetitia, Gaudete et Exsultate, and Christus Vivit). He's also presided over four World Youth Days, and in Fall 2018 convened a Synod on Youth. 

He’s called himself more than once a “son of the Church,” but never hesitates to speak plainly, to speak as a simple pastor, and to engage in dialogue with other faiths. 

Just recently, Francis also released a short Apostolic Letter on the meaning and importance of the Christmas créche, or Nativity scene, as part of a family's Advent & Christmas devotions:

Fun Fact: Apparently, the 2013 conclave wasn’t the first time Pope Francis was in the running for Vicar of Christ. He’s said to have been the runner-up to Benedict in the previous conclave (though “close” only counts in...well, you know), and later mentioned to a brother cardinal that he would have taken the name “John” if he’d been chosen in 2005, “like the Good Pope; I would have been completely inspired by him.”

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YOU DID IT! Stay tuned for a little note about Popes in a Year in 2020...
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