Pope Francis

Argentine cardinal who, on 13 March 2013, became the first Latin American, the first Jesuit, and the first pope from outside Europe in over 1,200 years to lead the Roman Catholic Church. Born in 1936 in Buenos Aires to Italian immigrant parents, he served as Archbishop of Buenos Aires before his election to the papacy, and has become one of the most globally influential moral voices of the twenty-first century — known for his emphasis on humility, mercy, the dignity of the poor, the urgency of the climate crisis, and an inclusive ecumenical posture. His encyclicals Laudato Si' (2015, on the environment) and Fratelli Tutti (2020, on universal fraternity) have shaped global conversation well beyond Catholicism.