Exclusive Feature
J
orge Mario Bergoglio
was born in Buenos Aires
on December 17, 1936.
He grew up in a house on No.
531 Membrillar, in the barrio
of Flores, one of the oldest
districts in the city. Famous for
its Italian-style buildings, the
barrio owes its name to Juan
Diego Flores, the owner of theJorge
Meet the future
Pope as a child, and
discover the many
influences that
molded him into the
man that he is now.
by Tiziana Lupi and the My Pope team
lands where the area developed,
little by little. The Bergoglio
house is simple; it is laid out on
two floors: on the ground floor
is the living room and a large
kitchen, on the upper floor are
the bedrooms.Jorge was the first of the five
children of Mario Jose andRegina Maria, who decided to
have him baptized a few days
after his birth, on December- The baptismal celebration
was held at the Basilica of San
Carlos and Maria Auxiliadora.
The infant Jorge was baptized
by a close friend of his family,
Fr. Enrico “Enrique” Pozzoli,
a missionary of the Salesian
community of Almagro who—
just like the Bergoglios—was
of Italian descent. After the
birth of Jorge Mario, Mario and
Regina had four more children
who rounded out their happy
brood: Oscar, Marta Regina,
Alberto, and Maria Elena, who
is the Pope’s only living sibling.The future Pope
Francis is all smiles as
he stands next to his
brother Oscar. This
photo was taken on
the day the two boys
had their First Holy
Communion.The “Italian” City of Buenos Aires Italian communities sprouted in the
area of La Boca in the 19th and 20th centuries. Counted among the Italian
immigrants was Regina Maria Sivori, the Pope's beloved Mama.