New Pope Elected

Jorge Bergoglio, the 76-year-old archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, has been elected as pope. He is the first Latin American to lead the Catholic Church. Bergoglio, who has taken the name Francis I, is also the first Jesuit priest to become pope.

Bergoglio is believed to have been the runner-up to Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, during the previous papal election. His stances on social issues place him firmly in the church's conservative wing. His selection of the name Francis is intriguing, in that he appears to be reaching out to the Franciscans, often considered a rival of the Jesuits.

While in his role as archbishop of Buenos Aires, he clashed with the country's president over gay marriage and contraception, as well as calling gay adoption discrimination against children. But he was also admired for his humility: he chose to ride public transportation rather than be chauffeured around in a limousine provided by the church and cooked his own meals, among other such acts of modesty.