Tomorrow 12 years have passed since Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio became Pope Francis, the first Latin American pontiff and the first Jesuit to lead the Catholic Church. Your choice, March 13, 2013, He marked a before and after in the recent history of the Church, with a papacy characterized by his focus on the poor, social justice and institutional reform.
However, this Anniversary will arrive at a time of concern for the faithful around the world, Since the Supreme Pontiff is hospitalized in Rome, facing health challenges that have put their pastoral agenda in temporary.
Before being hospitalized for double pneumonia, Pope Francis was facing The resistance of some of their own cardinals to cover a growing gap in the Vatican’s finances. For this reason, Three days before being admitted, Francisco ordered the creation of a new high -level commission to promote donations to the headquarters of the Catholic Church, which has 1,400 million members.
But these are just one of its reform proposals for which Francisco He has fought during his papacy. For the Pope has been classified as a “revolutionary”, for his struggle for a more open and modern church or for his support for the LGBTI community, which has made him a key figure of the 21st century.
“Pope Francis has done much in a world that requires truly positive leaderships. Pope Francis is recognized as a man of faith, committed to a message of hope and that is of course evidence Working to open a church to a different world, to a new world, being a reference of compassion and also renewal “said Santiago Andrés Sierra González. Ph.D. and
Teacher and researcher at the Faculty of Theology, Pontifical Javeriana University
Francisco, known for working until exhaustion, has continued to direct the Vatican From the hospital, since daily appointments are announced that require their approval.
The Pope has been trying to fix the budget for several years. He has cut the salaries of the cardinals three times since 2021 and demanded a “zero deficit” program in September.
His great reforms
Francisco’s leadership was characterized by addressing and making decisions about issues that were always of great distance For the Vatican and his pilgrimage, which led him to be recognized as a controversial and others, revolutionary.
Among that uncomfortable causes in which he took position was in front of the LGBTI communitycases of pedophilia within the institution and political crises in different countries.
In LGTBI issues, the Pope sent a message of support to this community, when he indicated in 2023 that he had no problem With the marriage between same -sex couples, which opened the possibilities that this population could access the Blessed Blessing.
But this did not remain in statements, because the Pope approved in 2023 that the priests Catholics can administer blessings to same -sex couples, as well as couples in a “irregular” situation, as long as these blessings are not part of a ritual or liturgy of the church.
As for corruption, it generated several reforms. Promoted In 2022 a reorganization of dicasteries (ministries) and prioritization of evangelization.
Also, he renewed the Vatican’s finances that were often in question by several scandals. To deal with this, he created a secretariat for the economy and the Application of an investment framework and measures to fight corruption. In addition, he gave the green light to the readjustment of the Vatican Bank with the closure of 5,000 accounts.
He also worked to combat and eradicate pedophilia within the institution, because during his Pontified complaints about this case were known in countries such as Germany, the United States and Ireland.
Therefore, in 2019, Francisco expelled the American cardinal Theodore McCarrick, declared guilty for sexual aggressions to minors. For this reason, he gave the order to create as a kind of confession to denounce any case of pedophilia within Catholic institutions. However, this system has not been done as such.
Pope Francis was also a great intermediary in the current war, such as that of Ukraine and Russia, in which it has asked for the cessation of hostilities.
He has also spoken about the environment as in his encyclical laudato yes (2015) with which He claimed a “green revolution” and rejected the “irresponsible use of the goods that God has put” on the planet.
When the Pope spoke of the world economy
In addition, during his pontificate, the Pope held several meetings with world leaders, from Fidel Castro to Kristalina Georgieva, Director of the International Monetary Fund. Also with Donald Trump, more recently with Javier Milei and Gustavo Petro.
One of the iconic meetings for the world economy was when she met with the director of the IMF, where she referred to the debt that afflicts the poorest countries.
There, in 2020, he asked the rich world to help developing countries to achieve debt sustainability to through measures such as debt restructuring. “They must remember their responsibility to help the poorest countries”he said at the time.
But, the Pope also met with powerful blocks of the economy, such as G7. This happened in June last year in Puglia, Italy, thanks to the management carried out by the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni to be possible.
The meeting revolved around artificial intelligence, in which the Pope warned about his risks.
“In the face of the wonders of the machines, which seem to know how to choose autonomously, we must be clear that the decision -making process, even when we face their sometimes dramatic and urgent aspects, should always be left to humans,” he said at the time.
When he visited Colombia
The Pope, during his tours in countries, to carry the gospelhe visited Colombia in 2017, under the mandate of that then President Juan Manuel Santos.
In this, he expressed his support for the peace process he made The Santos Government with the FARC and offered masses attended by more than one million people.
Among the places where Mass gave, was Simón Bolívar Park in Bogotá and Medellín. Both in the capital and in Medellín the masses that the Supreme Pontiff officiated exceeded one million attendees. He was also in Los Llanos for a meeting with victims of the Colombian armed conflict, and in Cartagena, where he finally departed from the country.
