Argentina stands out for having a large number of people who have excelled in different fields worldwide.
Despite the fact that as a country it is difficult for us to work together, which is very detrimental to us, we can be proud of the group of compatriots who have reached the top in their respective activities.
It is a country with notable individualities, which has produced five Nobel Prize winners and an Argentine Pope.
Francis is the first Latin American pontiff and the first non-European in more than a millennium.
In addition, he is the leader with the most popularity and the best image globally, according to international studies carried out by WIN / GIA / VOICES.
This month of March marked the 10th anniversary of the Papacy of Francis.
A very difficult decade with important changes in the world, the coronavirus pandemic with its multiple economic, social and all kinds of consequences;
the Russia-Ukraine war that is escalating and climate change.
His administration put the focus on social justice, on the world's poorest, on refugees, and I have worked tirelessly for them over the years.
He proposed a reform of the Church to make it more inclusive, more open and respectful of differences and types of family.
He fought against corruption and for transparency in the Vatican's finances and also against the internal pedophilia of the Institution in the world.
Very hard and difficult issues that he dared to face.
His personal austerity, his empathy towards the most vulnerable, his commitment to the environment and his incessant work in favor of the encounter between peoples are features that stand out in the figure of Pope Francis.
Throughout the decade he traveled to over 60 countries in the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia.
His visits to countries of different religions such as Jordan, Palestine, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain are especially interesting, showing his vision and geopolitical work.
No Pope has done as much as he in the dialogue between religions.
And he has been clear in his messages when pointing out that Christians and Muslims must "walk together" against all kinds of violence and that every human being is our brother regardless of their origin or religious affiliation.
The more we know the other, the one he thinks differently, the smaller the prejudices and the easier the understanding.
The future of all depends to a large extent on the encounter between cultures.
This is one of the great challenges to achieve a just world, in peace and without violence.
An important issue is what is happening with religiosity in the world, what situations the Papacy of Francis must face.
On the one hand, we observe that at a global level the majority of the population continues to believe in God and defines itself as religious, with belief in God being stronger than religiosity.
Most human beings need God and this gives greater meaning to their lives.
According to the latest Voices survey with the participation of 61 countries in 2022, 72% believe in God and 62% define themselves as religious.
Likewise, 57% globally believe in life after death.
However, we found large differences according to regions and countries.
Thus we see that it is above all in traditionally Catholic countries where religiosity has fallen in recent decades and reforms are required in the Church that the Supreme Pontiff sees clearly.
In the segmentation by regions, we observe that the countries of the European Union and East Asia and Oceania are the least religious.
In contrast, people in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and non-EU European countries express a much stronger religious affiliation.
In Latin America, 68% define themselves as religious and 88% believe in God, but in the case of Argentina, 55% are religious and 77% believe in God.
In North America those figures are 50% and 67% respectively.
Francis has been elected as pope at a time when religion is on the decline in much of the West.
We are seeing in recent decades a marked increase in secularization processes in Europe where people today are far from the churches, are very little religious and even less practicing.
In Argentina, the number of Catholics, religious people, attendance at Churches and the importance given to religion in life have decreased in recent decades.
And the same Pope, although he has a more positive image than the political leadership in general, in his own land he has a difficult relationship with some sectors of society that criticize him either because he did not visit the country or for political reasons resulting from the deep crack that we have today in Argentina.
This tenth anniversary can be an opportunity to generate the meeting that we Argentines need so much.
We have seen some signs in that direction and the leaders of different political parties jointly recognizing the work of Francis in these years when taking stock of his Papacy.
We celebrate this fact in the hope that we Argentines will finally meet and work together.
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