Pope Francis’ 10-year legacy

In his 10 years on the chair of St Peter – and as head of the nearly 1.38 billion-member Roman Catholic Church – Pope Francis has sought to position the church firmly in the modern world


Mar 13, 2013: Relatively unknown outside South America, 76-year-old Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina is elected as 266th Pope and first from Latin America

CARDINALS: Francis has named 111 cardinals, red-hatted Princes of the Church who are his
closest Vatican aides and who lead dioceses. 123 cardinals are currently aged under 80 and thus eligible under church law to elect next Bishop of Rome

SAINTS: Francis has canonised more than 900 new saints, including his predecessors John XXIII, John Paul II and Paul VI, as well as Mother Teresa of Calcutta and Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero

FOREIGN TRIPS: Francis has visited 60 states, clocking up almost 410,000km.
Pope Francis travels the world on Argentine passport – not as privileged citizen

FEMALE EMPLOYEES: Since 2013, number of women working in Roman Curia – administrative
institutions of Holy See – has risen from 19.3% to 26.1%.

Senior positions: Today, five women hold rank of undersecretary, and one has rank of secretary at Holy See


Sources: Catholic Weekly, Reuters, Vatican News
Pictures: Getty Images
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