Francis: A Pope for Our Time

The Catholic Church has been undoubtedly going through a period of profound crisis. Endless scandals and conspiracies have plagued the Church in recent years, and with resignation of Pope Benedict XVI in February 2013, the Catholic community was left in dire need of direction and spiritual renewal.Archbishop Jorge Bergoglio, elected to Saint Peters Throne on March 13, 2013, in one of the briefest conclaves in history, represents a rekindled sense of hope for the Churchs 1.2 billion followers. The first Jesuit to occupy the papacy, Pope Francis I is also the first pope ever to hail from the Americas, and has inspired an enormous sense of pride, especially among Latin Americans and his native Argentina.Francis: A Pope for Our Time, The Definitive Biography incisively chronicles Pope Francis ancestry, youth, call to faith, humble beginnings with the Society of Jesus, and rise through Argentinas ecclesiastical ranks, all the way to the Vatican. The book emphasizes His Holiness Jesuit background of humility, poverty, and service that stands to reform the Vaticans long history of lavish excess and removed otherworldly style of leadership.This concise biography also details Jorge Bergoglios coming of age during the Peronist years, the challenges he faced throughout Argentinas brutal military dictatorship, as well as his political stance against the progressive policies of the Kirchners.Known as the Black Pope (for his Jesuit garb), the Pope of the Poor, and the Third World Pope, such monikers exemplify Pope Francis original and primary mandate: his pastoral commitment to societys most underprivileged and disenfranchised. His dedication to interreligious dialogue, accessibility to his community, and rejection of pomp in favor of simplicity promises to bring real-world leadership to a modern Church desperate to emerge from old-world precepts.