Pope Francis Pope Francis Pope Francis (; ; ; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936) is the Pope of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State. Francis is the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere, and the first pope from outside Europe since the Syrian Gregory III, who reigned in the 8th century. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bergoglio was ordained a Catholic priest in 1969, and from 1973 to 1979 was Argentina's provincial superior of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). He became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998
Catholic Church in Argentina July 2010, Argentina was one of the first countries in the Latin America that legalized same-sex marriage, putting Argentina at odd's ends with the Catholic Church. Protesters, largely consisting of members of the Argentine Catholic Church and Evangelical and Protestant groups were sparked against the legislation, while demonstrating in front of the Congress. Argentina’s Synod of Bishops called upon Catholics to oppose politicians who supported the bill. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the Archbishop of Buenos Aires and Primate of Argentina, has said that if a proposed bill giving same-sex couples the opportunity to marry and adopt children should be approved,