Pope Francis: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Jorge Mario Bergoglio

Pope Francis I, formerly known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, is now the leader of the Catholic Church. Pope Francis I has been the talk of the news lately, but I bet there are some things you did not know about the life of Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

1. Pope Francis I has only one lung after losing the other to an infection during childhood, but health experts say it’s not likely to slow down the newly elected leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

2. The Twitter account of the newly elected Pope Francis I is a fake. Whoever made the @JMBergoglio account has already tweeted what would surely be controversial issues for a new pope including comments about Santa Claus and homosexuals.

3. Interim Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro claims that the recently deceased Hugo Chavez ascended to heaven and Chavez told Jesus to pick Jorge Mario Bergoglio since he’s South American (despite Pope Francis I’s family being Italian). Oh, yes, and Ahmadinejad also says Jesus will return with Hugo Chavez to save the world… but back to Pope Francis I.

4. Pope Francis I is the first pope to from the Jesuit order. If you follow the Nostradamus predictions, this would make Pope Francis the “Black Pope” since Jesuits are known for their black robes.

5. Pope Francis I is featured in another prophecy from Saint Malachy. The 112th pope is supposed to be the last pope before the end times. Jorge Mario Bergoglio is supposed to have a connection to the term “Petrus Romanus,” or Peter the Roman, and many Saint Malachy believers were hoping that Bergoglio would take Peter II as his pope name. Some readers have pointed out that if you break up the new pope’s last name, it can be translated from “Berg” into mountain, or rock/petrus, which is the meaning of Peter.

6. As a Jesuit, Jorge Mario Bergoglio has chosen to live a modest lifestyle. The motto Pope Francis I chose for his former Archdiocese is powerful: miserando atque eligendo — “lowly, but chosen.” He cooks his own meals, rides the bus with fellow commoners, and opts to live in a humble apartment instead of the available Archbishop’s quarters. The newly minted Pope Francis I even returned to pay his $110 hotel bill since he wanted to set a good example for fellow priests.

7. Pope Francis I is the first pontiff from the Americas and the first to take his name from St. Francis of Assisi.

8. Pope Francis I is a fan of the tango, saying, “I love tango and I used to dance when I was young.” In addition, this priest even had a girlfriend: “She was one of a group of friends I went dancing with. But then I discovered my religious vocation.” Perhaps due to this love of dancing, he worked as a bouncer in a Buenos Aires bar to earn money as a student.

9. When Jorge Mario Bergoglio was a member of Society of Jesus of Argentina, two Jesuit priests were kidnapped. The priests made it out alive but then accused Bergoglio of having something to do with their kidnapping. Bergoglio says that he went to extraordinary measures to work to have the men released.

10. During the 2005 papal conclave, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was a runner up to Joseph Ratziner, who become Pope Benedict XVI. Bergoglio was reportedly the victim of a smear campaign by other Jesuits who claimed that he never smiled. He does.

Lastly, the name is not Pope Francis I, only Pope Francis. The numbers only come into play if a future pope chooses Francis as well. What surprises you the most about Jorge Mario Bergoglio?

Pope Francis ditched the papal limousine yesterday to ride with rest of cardinals in mini-van

— Good Morning America (@GMA) March 15, 2013