Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio) was born in 1936 in a neighbourhood of Buenos Aires in Argentina. As a priest he climbed the hierarchy of the Jesuit order and on 13 March 2013 was chosen as the new Pope. Thus he became the first Jesuit Pope as well as the first Pope from the New World. As a sign of understanding and unity within the Catholic Church, he took the name of St Francis.

He is best-known for his direct style of communication with people, his struggle against consumerism as a way of life and his assertion of human dignity without prejudice to one’s beliefs.