Birth of Pope Francis

Pope Francis was born on 17 December 1936 in Flores. An Argentine Jesuit, Jorge Mario Bergoglio became archbishop of Buenos Aires and a cardinal, and was elected pope in March 2013 after Benedict XVI resigned, taking the name Francis. He was the first pope from the Americas, the first from the Jesuit order and the first from outside Europe in over a thousand years. He emphasised mercy, care for the poor and migrants, and dialogue with other religions, and in his encyclical Laudato Si' of 2015 called for action on climate change. He also pursued reform of the Vatican administration and faced criticism over the Church's handling of abuse. He died in Vatican City in April 2025.

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