Pope Francis was born on 17th December 1936 in Buenos Aires as Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He completed a course of study as a chemical technician, but after some time he decided to become a priest and later a novice of the Society of Jesus. He was ordained on 13th December 1969.  In 1973 he was elected as the Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus in Argentina and held this post for six years. In May 1992 he was appointed as the Titular Bishop of Auca and the Auxiliary Bishop of Buenos Aires by St. John Paul II.  In February 1998 he became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires. He was appointed and created a cardinal by St. John Paul II at the consistory of 21st February 2001. The conclave that followed the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on 28th February 2013 elected cardinal Bergoglio as the new Pope on 13th March 2013. He is the 266th pope and the first to come from the American continent (Argentina), the Jesuit order and the southern hemisphere. 

     Pope Francis is famous for his humility, his emphasis on Divine Mercy, his interest in the poor and the determination to hold an interreligious dialogue. He follows the tradition of the Second Vatican Council which promotes ecumenism with other Christian denominations and supports dialogue with leaders of other religions. It also promotes reconciliation with atheists.

     Pope Francis has made 33 apostolic journeys. The 52nd International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest, together with his visit of Slovakia, will be his 34th. He has accepted an invitation from all our bishops, who represent the Catholic Church in Slovakia, from the President of the Slovak Republic, as the head of state, as well as an invitation from the Government of the Slovak Republic. He is going to visit Bratislava, Košice, Prešov and Šaštín from 12th to 15th September 2021. The motto of his journey is “Follow Jesus with the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph”. 

 Mons. Ján Vallo