In the ten years of Pope Francis' pontificate, his unique figure stands out in a world
marked by the vacancy of leadership
at the height of the global challenges facing the Planet.
Coming from a country where the great leaderships have been in crisis for some time, Francisco projects himself as
the most charismatic and influential Argentine head of state
in the history of the world today.
That is his peculiarity: a Latin American at the head of a European state, the smallest in the world, bearer of influence and a projection of global reach,
which transcends his religious dimension
as head of the Catholic Church.
This Argentine Pope
, who never set foot on the soil of his native country again
, crosses borders with his word and testimony, as a promoter of ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue, a pilgrim of peace in a world at war;
promoter of the ideas of social justice and protection of the environment in the face of extreme inequalities and environmental deterioration that impacts all geographies and societies.
A Jesuit who speaks of the idea of the common good for a world in constant change, and "care for the Common Home", as he titles his encyclical Laudato Si,
placing
the postulates of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity at the crossroads of the 21st century.
Andrea Riccardi, historian and one of the most prominent intellectuals in the Catholic field in Italy, founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio, explains in a note from Corrierre della Sera, that "the first pontificate in the global world, oblivious to the post-conciliar articulation between progressives and conservatives, was born as a response to disorientation”.
Bergoglio shared the idea that the Church of Rome had to change, common to cardinals of different origins and positions.
But in addition, he understood that something deep down had changed among Catholics,
that the "we" had cracked and a common orientation had to be relaunched
.
It was the challenge to "go out" that he proposed a few months after his election with the encyclical Evangelii gaudium, writes Riccardi.
The eloquent phrase of Francis, recently elected, marks his pontificate: "It seems that my brother cardinals have gone looking for him (the new Pope) almost to the end of the world."
The "guide" was sought outside the usual worlds.
Francisco renewed the Church,
shook its foundations, aired its affairs
.
Far from his homeland, he has shown himself to be a more mundane and close Pope than his predecessors, and in some way, he represents us.