Happy 10th Anniversary as Pontiff to Pope Francis! Beginnings and Key Actions of his Pontificate that have Changed the World!

Pope Francis  was born as Jorge Mario Bergoglio on the 17th of December 1936. He became the head of the Catholic Church in 2013; Francis is the first pope to be a member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), the first from the Americas, and the first pope from outside Europe since the 8th century's Pope Gregory III (Syria). 

Did You Know? Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bergoglio worked for a time as a bouncer and a janitor as a young man; then as a chemist in a food science laboratory. After recovering from a severe pneumonia, where part of his lung was removed, he was called to join the Jesuits in 1958.

Answering the Call of Jesus

 Bergoglio officially became a Jesuit on 12 March 1960. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1969, and from 1973 to 1979 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. After the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on the 28th of February 2013, a papal conclave elected Cardinal Bergoglio as his successor on 13 March. He chose Francis as his papal name in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi. His motto is "Miserando atque eligendo" - Lowly but chosen. Pope Francis accepted his role as Sovereign head of the Roman Catholic Church. It was declared Habemus Papam, meaning we have a Pope. White smoke from the Vatican indicated that a new Pope was chosen after the conclave of Cardinals.

He chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse rather than the Apostolic Palace used by previous popes. 

Family Origins

 He was the eldest of five children of Mario José Bergoglio (1908–1959) and Regina María Sívori (1911–1981). Mario Bergoglio was an Italian immigrant accountant, Regina Sívori, was a housewife born in Buenos Aires to a family of Italian origin. María Elena Bergoglio (born 1948), is the pope's only living sibling. His other siblings were Oscar Adrián (1938–deceased), Marta Regina (1940–2007), and Alberto Horacio (1942–2010). 

 
Pope Francis has written 3 Encyclicals: Fratelli tutti (3 October 2020), Laudato si' (24 May 2015), Lumen fidei (29 June 2013).

There are 5 Apostolic Exhortations from his Pontificate:  
“Querida Amazonia”: Post-Synodal Exhortation to the People of God and to All Persons of Good Will (2 February 2020), "Christus vivit": Post-Synodal Exhortation to Young People and to the entire People of God (25 March 2019), Gaudete et exsultate: Apostolic Exhortation on the call to holiness in today's world (19 March 2018), Amoris laetitia: Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation on love in the family (19 March 2016), Evangelii Gaudium : Apostolic Exhortation on the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today's World (24 November 2013). 

Of his 20 Apostolic Constitutions; Praedicate evangelium: promulgated in 2022, it gives a more missionary structure to the Curia. Among the novelties introduced by the Pope are the establishment of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity and the new Dicastery for Evangelisation, headed directly by the Pope. 

Trips Around the World: The pope has made 40 apostolic journeys to other countries and always entrusted them in prayer to Our Lady.

During his 2015 journey to the Philippines, Pope Francis presided over the largest Papal Mass with between 6 and 7 million people gathered in Rizal Park in Manila on January 19th.

PRAYER for the POPE: O God, shepherd and ruler of all the faithful, look favorably on your servant Francis, whom you have set at the head of your Church as her shepherd; Grant, we pray, that by word and example he may be of service to those over whom he presides so that, together with the flock entrusted to his care, he may come to everlasting life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Prayer Source: USCCB)

Key Actions of Pope Francis' 10 Year Pontificate

In April 2015 his papal bull of indiction, Misericordiae Vultus (Latin: "The Face of Mercy"), inaugurated a Special Jubilee Year of Mercy, to run from 8 December 2015,  to the last Sunday before Advent on 20 November 2016. The Holy Doors of the major basilicas of Rome (including the Great Door of St. Peter's) were opened, and special "Doors of Mercy" were opened at cathedrals and other major churches around the world.

In 2015, the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation was established, to be celebrated every year on 1 September together with the Orthodox Church, to exhort Christians to an 'ecological conversion'. An exhortation also reiterated in the Pope's second encyclical (the first, Lumen fidei, is shared with his predecessor, Benedict XVI), Laudato si' on the care of the common home, also published in 2015. The main thrust of the document is the exhortation for a 'change of course' so that humanity takes responsibility for a commitment to 'care for our common home'. A commitment that also includes the eradication of misery, care for the poor and fair access for all to the planet's resources. On 12 February 2016, in Cuba, Pope Francis met the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Kirill, and with him signed a joint declaration to put into practice 'the ecumenism of charity', that is, the common commitment of Christians to build a more fraternal humanity. A tragically topical commitment when, on 16 March 2022, at the height of the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill had a conversation via videoconference in which they reaffirmed their common effort to "stop the fire" by focusing on the "negotiation process". Unforgettable, also, is the ecumenical peace pilgrimage to South Sudan, made last month by the Pope together with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields. 

 As for interreligious dialogue, a milestone is represented by the 'Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together,' signed on 4 February 2019 by the Pope and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, in Abu Dhabi. The text is a breakthrough in relations between Christianity and Islam, as it encourages interreligious dialogue and unequivocally condemns terrorism and violence. Pope Francis is implementing an important change, in two stages, in 2023 and 2024, on the theme 'For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission', will be the concluding stage of a three-year journey made up of listening, discernment, consultation and divided into three phases: diocesan, continental, universal. 

 Pope Francis' also fights against abuse especially with the summit on the protection of minors, held in the Vatican in February 2019. A clear expression of the Church's desire to act with truth and transparency, the meeting resulted in the Motu proprio Vos estis lux mundi, which establishes new procedures for reporting harassment and violence and ensuring that bishops and religious superiors are accountable. 

 The Pope has a relentless commitment to peace, as expressed in the encyclical Fratelli tutti. Released on 4 October 2020, it calls for fraternity and social friendship and firmly says no to war. Two years later, when the conflict in Ukraine exploded, the exhortation contained in this document for a 'real and lasting peace' that starts from 'a global ethic of solidarity' will seem prophetic, in a world that is increasingly experiencing 'a third world war fought piecemeal'. The Pope also held an 'Invocation for peace in the Holy Land', on June 8th, 2014 in the Vatican Gardens together with the presidents of Israel, Shimon Peres, and Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas; and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba, on 17 December of the same year. A historic event for which Pope Francis himself spent months sending missives to the heads of state of the two countries, Barack Obama and Raúl Castro, urging them to "start a new phase". Also along the same lines is the provisional agreement between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China on the appointment of bishops, stipulated in 2018, renewed in 2020 and extended for another two years in 2022. Moreover, in this last year, marked by the conflict in Ukraine, the Pope has been personally committed to peace. On 25 February 2022, he visited the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Holy See, Alexander Avdeev, and on several occasions spoke by phone with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky. His appeals to silence all weapons have also been numerous.

 Evangelisation - or rather, the passion for evangelisation, is the theme of the cycle of catechesis at the General Audience currently underway. Made explicit in 2013 in Evangelii gaudium. Evangelisation must be characterised by joy, by the 'beauty of God's saving love', by a Church 'going out', close to the faithful, ready for the 'revolution of tenderness'. 

 Moreover, Pope Francis enjoys a strong connection with his predecessors, marked, on 27 April 2014, by the canonisation of Pope Saints John XXIII and John Paul II. They were joined by Paul VI, canonised on 14 October 2018, and John Paul I, beatified on 4 September 2022, whose smile the current Pope remembers, a symbol of "a Church with a joyful face". However, a special place belongs to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who passed away on 31 December 2022. In ten years, the Pope has never hidden the immense respect he feels for Joseph Ratzinger. On several occasions, he has praised his theological finesse, kindness and dedication. On 5 January this year, he presided over his funeral in St. Peter's Square, the first Pope in modern times to celebrate the funeral of one of his predecessors. migrants. 

 He has traveled to Lesbos in Greece to meet with refugees—a scene that touched many. The Pope has visited places where men and women suffer abandonment, hunger and violence, like his trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the Philippines, Pope Francis brought to light the tragic situation of abandoned children. In Canada, he traveled to ask forgiveness for the abuses committed against indigenous people in Catholic residences. 

 Pope Francis was the first pope to visit the Arabian Peninsula. In 2019, he visited the United Arab Emirates to strengthen ties with Islam. Three years later, he traveled to Bahrain and denounced religious fanaticism. The Pope also visited Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. The joy shown by the millions of people who came from around the world demonstrated their love for the first Latin American Pope in history. 

Pope Francis made a high-risk visit to Iraq in 2021, and his most recent trip to South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo was similar. Among other things, it reminded us that Africa is where the Church is growing the fastest and with the greatest energy and vitality. Pope Francis has shown his favor for the peripheries of the world by creating cardinals that come from what some would consider the ends of the earth – Tonga, Mongolia, Lesotho – ensuring that the Catholic Church is more universal than ever. 

He has  given women a greater and higher-profile role in Church government by appointing several to important executive positions in the Vatican. Currently one in four Vatican employees is a woman, and the Pope has expressed his openness to placing a woman, lay or religious, at the head of a Vatican Dicastery.

World Youth Days 

 In the 10 years of his papacy, the Holy Father has met with young people at World Youth Days (WYD) and invited them to follow Jesus. For Pope Francis’ first World Youth Day, he made an apostolic journey to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where he addressed millions of people. The theme that year was “Go and make disciples of all nations!” of the Gospel of Matthew. Subsequent years held World Youth Days were held locally; Pope Francis celebrated these days with youth in Rome and encouraged all involved to seek Christ. In his apostolic journey to Krakow, Poland, for World Youth Day 2016, Pope Francis’ theme was; “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Pope Francis met with pilgrims at World Youth Day in Panama City, in January, 2019.

Sources: Vatican News - Vatican.va - USCCB