Why you should listen
Pope Francis was elected in March 2013, becoming the first Pope from the Americas and from the Southern Hemisphere. He was a strong advocate of global action against climate change, to which he devoted his powerful 2015 encyclical "Laudato Si'" ("Praise be to you"). He was born in 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, to a family of Italian immigrants. A Jesuit, he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires and then a Cardinal leading the Argentinian church. Upon his election as the 266th Pope, he chose Francis as his papal name in reference to Saint Francis of Assisi. His worldview was solidly anchored in humility, simplicity, mercy, social justice and attention to the poor. He was committed to interfaith dialogue and was seen as a moral and spiritual authority across the world.
