head of the Catholic Church
His Holiness Pope Francis
His Holiness Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires on December 17, 1936, the son of Italian immigrants. He graduated as a chemical technician before choosing the path of the priesthood. In 1998, he was named Archbishop of Buenos Aires - a diocese with more than three million inhabitants — where one of his main goals was assistance to the poor and the sick. “My people are poor and I am one of them,” he said more than once, explaining his decision to live in an apartment and cook his own supper.
He was consecrated a cardinal in the Catholic Church in 2001 and was elected Supreme Pontiff on March 13, 2013, making His Holiness the first pope from the Western Hemisphere, the first from South America, and the first from the Jesuit order.
