On September 27 Philadelphia welcomed Pope Francis for the eighth World Meeting of Families, which joins families and faiths from across the globe together to reaffirm their importance in society. This is the first time any pope has been in the United States since April of 2008. “The people’s pope”, as he is nicknamed, was born with the name Jorge Mario Bergoglio on December 17, 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina to Italian immigrants, Mario and Regina. However, he now goes by the name Francis.

Pope Francis graduated as a chemical technician before deciding that he wanted to become a priest. On March 11, 1958 Francis entered the novitiate to the Society of Jesus and began his training by studying humanities in Chile. He then went back to Argentina to study philosophy and began teaching literature and psychology for three years. Later on, Francis went back to school to study theology at the Colegio of San José for another four years. All his hard work and years of schooling paid off because on December 13, 1969, he was officially ordained a priest. He continued his training for several more years and on July 13, 1973 he became Provincial of the Jesuits. Since he was becoming more powerful, people started to take notice of him, so on February 21, 2001 he became an official Cardinal by Pope John Paul the second. Francis used his high status in priesthood to continue his work and caring for all people. Eventually he became the Supreme Pontiff on March 13, 2013. Now at the age of 76, Pope Francis continues to work and care for the people of the world by traveling the globe and speaking on important issues. In his most recent stop, in Philadelphia, his message was clear and powerful throughout his visit. It will definitely have a lasting effect on the future of Philadelphia.