The Catholic Church selected the new Pope, Francis I. He’s the first non-European pope. He’s from Argentina (but his parents are Italian). Pre-pope name: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio.
I know everyone is asking,
“Why did it take so long to select an non-European pope?”
It took over 2000 years (although, Peter, the first “pope,” wasn’t European).
Yes, that’s a great question, but let’s applaud this bold move outside of “The Continent.”
My question is,
“Why did it take so long for a pope to take the name of Francis?”
The new pope is named after one of my heroes of faith, Francis of Assisi (1181-1226). (See God Behaving Badly, pages 91-92). Francis valued a simple lifestyle (see image), a focus on Jesus and a connection to God through creation that the Church could learn a lot from today.
I don’t know much about Pope Francis I (he’s 76- so he may not be around long), but I really like his choice of a name.
What do you think of the new Pope?