Latino VoicesJorge Mario BergoglioPope FrancisLatino Pope

Pope Francis: A Humble And Outspoken Man, And Technically Also Italian

An Intimate Portrait Of The First Latino Pope
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National Reporter, HuffPost

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In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis waves the crowd from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 13, 2013. Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who chose the name of Pope Francis, is the 266th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, ho)

The new leader of the Catholic Church is a man of simple, austere habits. Father Guillermo Marcó, President of Fundación Pastoral Universitaria San Lucas and Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio’s spokesman from 1998 to 2006, says for the past 14 years as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, his daily routine remained unchanged. Father Marcó explains Cardinal Bergoglio would wake up around 4.30 or 5 a.m. and then conduct his morning prayers. By 7 a.m., after having a light breakfast, he would read the papers. Then, until 8 a.m., he would remain close to a landline telephone.

Every priest in town knew that phone’s number, and every one of them knew that they could call every morning between 7 and 8 if they had any problem. The Cardinal himself would pick up the phone. Not any secretary, not any clerical adjutant, but Archbishop Bergoglio. He would listen to their complaints and their requests and he would jot down his observations in a small pocket-book with a small, almost microscopic handwriting. Only then he would walk down to his office, just a few steps away.

“Up until five days ago, this was his daily routine,” says Father Marcó.

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Before You Go

5 Reasons A Latino Pope Makes Sense
Latin America has more Catholics than any region of the world(01 of05)
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This is the most obvious reason. Latin America is home to 480 million Latinos, according to CNN -- making it the region with the most Catholics in the world. Some 39 percent of Catholics live in Latin America, well ahead of the 24 percent that live in Europe, where all popes in recent history have been selected from. (credit:AP)
It’s time for the Church to diversify(02 of05)
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The position of Pope has been held exclusively by white European men in recent history, despite the fact that they are a dwindling segment of practicing Catholics. (credit:Faithfuls react as Argentina's cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, elected Pope Francis I appears on the balcony of St Peter's Basilica's after being elected the 266th pope of the Roman Catholic Church on March 13, 2013 at the Vatican. Argentina's Jorge Mario Bergo)
Latinos Are Kind Of Like Europeans(03 of05)
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For a two-millennia institution that accepts change slowly, Latin America makes it easy for the Church to take baby steps toward the reality that Europeans make up less than a quarter of the religion’s adherents. Millions of Europeans, including Pope Francis’ Italian-born father, immigrated to Latin America, giving it a more intimate relationship with Vatican City than some other regions of the world. (credit:This Feb. 14, 2013 photo shows Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio leading a mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013. Bergoglio, who took the name of Pope Francis, was elected on Wednes)
Latinos are helping keep the number of Catholics in the United States steady(04 of05)
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Catholicism has experienced the “greatest net losses” of any major religion in the United States in recent years, ABC/Univision News reports. The decline has only been slowed by the influx of Latino immigrants and Hispanic population growth. (credit:AP)
A Latino Pope may help boost Catholic enthusiasm in Latin America(05 of05)
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Latin America may be the Catholic Church’s world stronghold, but it’s also seen dropping numbers in some countries. More than 1,000 catholics left the Catholic Church every day over the last decade in Mexico, according to Spanish newswire EFE. In Central America and Brazil, evangelical churches won converts in recent years. Picking a Pope from the region may help the Church ramp up enthusiasm for the region’s most dominant religion. (credit:AP)
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