A boy in love, a girl's 'no', and how it led to the making of Pope Francis

A story of heartbreak that led Jorge Mario Bergoglio to become Pope Francis - the first non-European leader of the Catholic Church in over 1,300 years

When Jorge Mario Bergoglio was 12, he fell in love with a girl named Amalia. He asked her to marry him. But her answer set him on a different path.

 

“He said that if I didn’t say yes, he would have to become a priest. Luckily for him, I said no,” Amalia recalled years later. 

That moment of rejection would shape history. Jorge Mario Bergoglio would go on to become Pope Francis — the first non-European leader of the Catholic Church in over 1,300 years.

 

A papacy that ends 

On Easter Monday, Pope Francis passed away at the age of 88, ending a papacy that transformed the image of the Roman Catholic Church. The announcement came from Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, who now oversees the Church during the interregnum—the period between papacies. 

 

Standing before the Casa Santa Marta, Cardinal Farrell delivered the news. 

“Brothers and sisters, I must announce the death of our Father Francis. At 7.35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and love, especially in favour of the poor and marginalised. With gratitude for his example as a disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the love of the One and Triune God.” 

 

A Pope of firsts, and a Pope of the people 

Pope Francis was a man of many firsts—first Jesuit Pope, first from Latin America, and the first to take the name ‘Francis’, inspired by Saint Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of the poor.

 

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, he brought humility to the Vatican. He shunned papal apartments, choosing instead to live in a guesthouse. He often rode in a car, personally called parishioners, and carried his luggage—gestures that earned him a reputation as the ‘people’s Pope’.

 

Yet his papacy was not without controversy. His views on climate change, migration, same-sex unions, and capitalism made him both a beloved as well as polarising figure. His role during Argentina’s military dictatorship, and his pace in addressing Church scandals, remained aspects of his legacy. 

 

Despite health issues in recent years — including hospitalisations and a case of double pneumonia earlier this year — Pope Francis remained resilient. He continued to speak about death, urging the faithful to embrace it not with fear, but with preparation and peace.