Roman Catholic Has a New Pope - Pope Francis

The Conclave has successfully elected the new Pope, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio from Buenos Aires, Argentina will lead the worlds 1.2 billion Catholics.

French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran took to the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to announce the name of the 266th pope.  As per tradition, Cardinal Tauran shouted "Habemus Papam!" (which means "we have a new pope!"). He then revealed that the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires would be the new head of the Catholic church.

The 76-year-old pontiff was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and became a cardinal of the Catholic church in 2001, proclaimed so by Pope John Paul II. Bergoglio is reported to have had the second-most votes after pope emeritus Benedict XVI in the 2005 papal conclave.

Jorge Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires, one of the five children of an Italian railway worker and his wife.

• He received a master's degree in chemistry at the University of Buenos Aires, then studied at the seminary in Villa Devoto.


• He entered the Society of Jesus on March 11, 1958.


• Bergoglio obtained a licentiate in philosophy from the Colegio Máximo San José in San Miguel,


• Taught literature and psychology at the Colegio de la Immaculada in Santa Fe, and the Colegio del Salvador in Buenos Aires.


• He was ordained to the priesthood on December 13, 1969, by Archbishop Ramón José Castellano.


• He attended the Philosophical and Theological Faculty of San Miguel, a seminary in San Miguel.


• Bergoglio attained the position of novice master there and became professor of theology.

Cardinal Bergoglio is the first Jesuit priest chosen to be pope. He is the first Pope to have been born in the Americas and is the first non-European Pope in over 1,200 years; the last non-European Pope, St. Gregory III, was born in Syria and reigned from 731 to 741.

Pope Francis, whose papacy is effective immediately, will be formally installed in the coming days.

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