Pope Francis I
HABEMUS PAPAM!
‘We have a Pope!’
THE SON OF A RAILWAY WORKER
Pope Francis - the first Jesuit pope - has spent
nearly his entire career at home in
Argentina.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 76, reportedly got
the second-most votes after Joseph
Ratzinger, the last pope, in the 2005 papal
election.
He was born in Buenos Aires, one of five
children of an Italian railway worker and
his wife and was ordained to the
priesthood in 1969.
He became Pope Francis after a surprisingly
quick conclave winning 77 votes, or twothirds of the 115 cardinals' votes, on the
fifth ballot.
His decision to pick the name Francis evokes
key Christian tenets such as simplicity and
humility.
And they are fitting for a man who, spending
nearly his entire career in Argentina, is
known for catching the bus and eschewing
the luxuries of high office.
Tens of thousands of Catholics flocked to the Vatican City
last night to witness Jorge Mario Bergoglio's unveiling as
Pope Francis I.
The Argentine son of an Italian railway worker was chosen
as the 266th pontiff on the fifth ballot of the conclave of
cardinals last night, with the Sistine Chapel's symbolic
white smoke revealing the decision.
But despite the most daunting of starts to his new
role, Pope Francis thought it best to start his first
papal address with a joke.
He told the thousands of soaking Catholics huddled
in the Vatican City's St. Peter's Square that the
cardinals had gathered to 'give Rome a bishop' but
said that they had 'gone to the ends of the earth
to get one'.
The multilingual Pope's birthplace will be seen as
a significant move to a continent in which 42
per cent of the world's Catholics live.
He is first non-European Pope since the Syrian
Gregory III in 731.
He becomes the third non-Italian Pope in a row.
Thousands of worshippers crammed into St Peter’s Square. At
6.06pm UK time, the white smoke began to billow signalling
that a second day of voting had been successful. Soon after it
was announced that the conclave had returned the Archbishop
of Buenos Aires as Pope.
French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran
announced ‘Habemus Papam!’ Latin for
‘We have a Pope’ before introducing him
to the world in Latin.
Emerging onto the balcony in his white cassock, the new
Pope addressed the crowd in Italian, saying ‘Brothers
and sisters, Good evening. Let’s start this path of the
Church of Rome together, bishop and people together,
(a path) of fraternity, love and trust among us.
‘Let’s pray for one another, for the whole
world, so that there is great fraternity.’
His first act was to lead the crowd in a prayer
for the Pope Emeritus, Benedict.
He led the faithful in reciting the Lord’s Prayer
and asked the crowd to pray for him before
blessing the people gathered in St. Peter’s
Square and bidding them goodnight.
The Vatican has
said he chose
the name
Francis after St.
Francis of Assisi,
who formed the
Franciscan
order, saying
that the new
Pope is a 'lover
of the poor'.
His first speech as Pope
Brothers and sisters, good evening!
You know that it was the duty of the conclave to give Rome a Bishop. It seems that
my brother cardinals have gone to the ends of the earth to get one... but here we
are... I thank you for your welcome. The diocesan community of Rome now has
its Bishop. Thank you!
And first of all, I would like to offer a prayer for our Bishop Emeritus, Benedict XVI.
Let us pray together for him, that the Lord may bless him and that Our Lady may
keep him.
(Our Father... Hail Mary... Glory Be... )
And now, we take up this journey: Bishop and People. This journey of the Church of
Rome which presides in charity over all the Churches. A journey of fraternity, of
love, of trust among us.
Let us always pray for one another. Let us pray for the whole world, that there may
be a great spirit of fraternity. It is my hope for you that this journey of the
Church, which we start today, and in which my Cardinal Vicar, here present, will
assist me, will be fruitful for the evangelisation of this most beautiful city.
And now I would like to give the blessing, but first - first I ask a favour
of you: before the Bishop blesses his people, I ask you to pray to the
Lord that he will bless me: the prayer of the people asking the
blessing for their Bishop. Let us make, in silence, this prayer: your
prayer over me.
(...)
Now I will give the blessing to you and to the whole world, to all men
and women of goodwill. (Blessing)
Brothers and sisters, I leave you now. Thank you for your welcome.
Pray for me and until we meet again. We will see each other soon.
Tomorrow I wish to go and pray to Our Lady, that she may watch
over all of Rome. Good night and sleep well!
A trained chemist, he has
been a cardinal since
2001 and is known for
his humility, for years
living in a modest
apartment, rather than
his official residence
and taking public
transport rather than
his official limousine.
The native
Spanish speaker,
who will be
inaugurated on
March 19, is
multilingual,
also speaking
German and
Italian - the
language of the
church.
And the name...
He chose the name Pope Francis I,
after St Francis of Assisi and is the
first pope from the Americas and
the first from outside Europe in
over a thousand years.
The Vatican said it is a homage to
St. Francis of Assisi, the 13th
century Italian founder of the
Franciscan order, describing him
as a 'lover of the poor'.
St Francis of Assisi is a man
who turned his back on
power and wealth to
dedicate himself to a
radical life of Christian
poverty, evangelisation
and peace-making.
St Francis was so holy that,
according to Catholic
belief, he received the
stigmata, the five wounds
of Christ, in his own body
while still alive.
The attraction of taking the name of a
man who founded a religious order
may be strong given that the new
Pope is a member of an order himself.
He belongs to the Jesuits, or the Society
of Jesus, which for the 400 years the
most popular order in the Catholic
Church and its members were known
for the bravery and academic
excellence.
The choice of the name of the new pope
may also be connected to one of the
first Jesuits – St Francis Xavier – a close
colleague of the 16th founder, St
Ignatius of Loyola.
St Francis was a missionary who took the
Catholic faith to India and the Far East
after Ignatius persuaded him to turn
his back on a medical career.
On his personal account, he tweeted shortly
after the decision, writing: 'Perhaps a little
humility in saying I am simply representative
of God on Earth, just as God is representative
of me in Heaven.‘
He followed this 20 minutes later with a
message saying 'Extremely happy to be the
new Pope, Francisco I'.
Watch Pope Francis I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KCuYA7kgU
Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen