NEWLY ELECTED POPE

Newly elected Pope Francis I appears on the central balcony of St Peter's Basilica on March 13, 2013 in Vatican City, Vatican. Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected as the 266th Pontiff and will lead the world's 1.2 billion Catholics

Birth, education and priesthood
» Born: Dec. 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
» Education: Studied at Theological Faculty of San Miguel. Received licentiate in philosophy.
» Ordained for the Jesuits on Dec. 13, 1969. No Jesuit priest has ever served as pontiff.
» Languages: Besides his native Spanish, Bergoglio also speaks Italian and German.
» Had a lung removed due to infection when he was a teenager.
Becomes a bishop
» Ordained titular bishop of Auca and auxiliary of Buenos Aires on June 27, 1992.
» Became archbishop of Buenos Aires on Feb. 28, 1998.
» Received title ordinary for the Eastern-rite faithful in Argentina who lack an ordinary in their own rite on Nov. 30, 1998.
Becomes a cardinal
» Proclaimed cardinal by Pope John Paul II on Feb. 21, 2001.
» Participated in conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005.
» Served as president of the Bishops’ Conference of Argentina from November 2005 to November 2011.
» Reportedly received the second-most votes after Joseph Ratzinger in the 2005 papal election.
Interesting facts, comments
» Bergoglio never lived in the ornate church mansion in Buenos Aires, preferring a simple bed in a downtown room heated by a small stove. For years, he took public transportation around the city.
» When Bergoglio argued that gay adoptions discriminate against children, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez compared his tone to “medieval times and the Inquisition.”
» Critics accuse him of failing to stand up publicly against the country’s military dictatorship from 1976-1983, when victims and their relatives often brought first-hand accounts of torture, death and kidnappings.