A long-in-the-making biography of Pope Francis arrives in bookstores

“I love punctuality, it is a virtue I have learned to value,” Pope Francis wrote in the fifth chapter of his autobiography, which will be published Tuesday in 18 languages, adding that he considers it “a sign of good morals and respect, delivered immediately.”

Unfortunately, the newborn, Francis writes, arrived a week late, necessitating a call for the doctor, who sat on his mother’s stomach and began “squeezing and jumping” to induce his birth.

“And so I came into the world,” Francis writes.

‘Hope: The Autobiography’ of Pope Francis – a 320-page compendium of the Pope’s recollections and reflections on the major social and political issues of our time, including climate change, poverty, migration, arms control and war – is described as ‘Hope: The Autobiography’ of Pope Francis – a 320-page summary of the Pope’s recollections and reflections on the major social and political issues of our time, including climate change, poverty, migration, arms control and war – is described as “Hope: The Autobiography” of Pope Francis – a 320-page summary of the pope’s recollections and reflections on the major social and political issues of our time, including climate change, poverty, migration, arms control and war – has been described by English language publisher Random House, As a “landmark publication” and “the first memoir published by a pope.”

This is not technically correct. That honor belongs to Pope Pius II’s 15th-century Chronicles of the Commentaries, an account of his life in 13 books that is considered a seminal text in Renaissance humanism.

Francis is also not the first pope to share his life story. As a cardinal, Joseph Ratzinger wrote an autobiography published in 1997, eight years before he became Pope Benedict XVI, and he and his predecessor John Paul II co-authored books with journalists that were personal reflections rather than official papal documents.

But for readers, including faithful Roman Catholics, “Hope” vividly recreates the colorful world in which young Jorge Mario Bergoglio grew up — a world that was a collection of immigrants from various countries and colorful characters, including prostitutes, “Mrs. “The bag.” “Aunt, and other unforgettable family members.

People who watch Francis closely will recognize in his biography many of his views from his various publications, his weekly addresses at the Vatican, and his sermons during his travels. But “Hope” draws a line from childhood events and encounters that shaped Francis’s thinking to the present day.

He writes that Francis’s unwavering support for immigrants stems from his background as the son of Italian immigrants to Argentina. His abhorrence of war – “Anyone who makes war is evil. “God is peace,” he writes in Hope – finds its roots in his grandfather’s wartime experiences in World War I. “Nuno described the horror, the pain, the fear, the ridiculous, repulsive futility of war,” as One left-leaning medical pharmaceutical researcher he met before entering seminary “taught me to think—and by that I mean to think about politics,” he writes.

There are many personal memories described in the book: Francis wrote that when he was a young teacher teaching creative writing, his students called him “carrocha,” or “lovely face.” He remembers that he once helped Jorge Luis Borges, who was almost blind, shave. “He was an atheist who said the Lord’s Prayer every night because he promised his mother that he would do it, and that he would die with his last rites.”

Francis is no stranger to journalistic collaboration. A book has been published about his life written from interviews he gave with Argentine journalist Sergio Rubin while he was still Cardinal of Buenos Aires.

Since becoming pope, there have been several other writings: Francis wrote “Let’s Dream,” a first-person narrative exploring how crisis can be a positive catalyst for change, during the coronavirus pandemic, with his biographer Austin Avery. The book reached the New York Times bestseller list. last year”life“, a richly told book by Fabio Marchese Ragona, has been published around the world and was included in the Times list.

Hope was six years in the making and was one of the best-kept secrets in publishing. Originally, Francis had intended to publish the biography posthumously, but changed his mind last summer so that publication would coincide with the Jubilee of 2025, the Catholic Church’s holy year that takes place every quarter century.

Italian publishing house Mondadori announced the book’s imminent release at the Frankfurt Book Fair last year, sparking excitement, especially among Francis’ biographers.

The biography was an opportunity “for Francis to delve into episodes from his life, which his biographers, myself included, have speculated and discussed and sometimes struggled to explain,” Mr. Everny said in an interview.

But although it is rich with anecdotes about Francis’s childhood in the Buenos Aires neighborhood, and Mr. Everny describes the episodes as “gems,” the book does not offer much insight into Francis’s later life beyond that which is already “well-circulated material.”

For example, Francis says little about his years in the Vatican. His comment that “the reform of the Roman Curia was the most demanding, and for a long time there was the greatest resistance to change” provides no details about the struggles it involved.

“The pope is the pope, and it is wonderful to have his ideas recast for a wide audience,” Mr. Everny said, adding that he believes the pope sees these books “as an evangelistic tool.” But, he added, “I was frankly disappointed” to find that most of the original material had been transposed to his childhood years.

Perhaps the most significant excerpt in the book is Francis’s recollections of his 2021 visit to Iraq, which was published as an excerpt in the Jesuit magazine America in December. Francis wrote that he survived Two failed assassination attempts. Former Governor of Nineveh later He denied that such incidents occurred. The Times also published an excerpt from the biography in December, and that article is there Belief in humor.

Gian Maria Vian, former editor-in-chief of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, said he appreciated the “many personal details” the book added to Francis’ biography, but that many of them were written through “rose-colored glasses.”

Francis wrote the book with Mr. Musso, a former publishing director at Mondadori who recently founded an independent publishing house. The idea crystallized in 2019 and work began a year later.

“I was honored by his confidence,” Mr. Musso said. “I don’t think he wanted a biography to talk about himself, but rather he wanted to use his memories and stories to talk about everyone and everyone, even in very difficult moments.”