Pope Francis is the current Pope of the Catholic Church. He was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio on December 17, 1936 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Bergoglio was ordained a priest in 1969 and became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998. He was created a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2001. On March 13, 2013, he succeeded Benedict XVI as pope upon his resignation.
Pope Francis is one of the most popular and respected religious leaders in the world. He is known for his work with the poor and marginalized people of society. He’s also famous for his progressive views on social issues, as well as his down-to-earth personality. To honor his work, here are the best Pope Francis quotes.
Table of Contents
- Pope Francis Quotes on Life
- Pope Francis Quotes on Politics
- Pope Francis Quotes on God
- Pope Francis Quotes on Religion
- Interesting Facts about Pope Francis
Pope Francis Quotes on Life
Life is a journey. When we stop, things don’t go right.
The worship of the golden calf of old has found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any truly human goal.
We must restore hope to young people, help the old, be open to the future, spread love. Be poor among the poor. We need to include the excluded and preach peace.
A little bit of mercy makes the world less cold and more just.
Unrestrained liberalism only makes the strong stronger and the weak weaker and excludes the most excluded.
My authoritarian and quick manner of making decisions led me to have serious problems and to be accused of being ultraconservative. I have never been a right-winger. It was my authoritarian way of making decisions that created problems.
Where there is no work, there is no dignity.
More and more people work on Sundays as a consequence of the competitiveness imposed by a consumer society.
Among us, who is above must be in service of the others. This doesn’t mean we have to wash each other’s feet every day, but we must help one another.
Human rights are not only violated by terrorism, repression or assassination, but also by unfair economic structures that creates huge inequalities.
We all have the duty to do good.
Wretched are those who are vindictive and spiteful.
Each of us has a vision of good and of evil. We have to encourage people to move towards what they think is good… Everyone has his own idea of good and evil and must choose to follow the good and fight evil as he conceives them. That would be enough to make the world a better place.
Today, the news is scandals; that is news, but the many children who don’t have food – that’s not news. This is grave. We can’t rest easy while things are this way.
No one can grow if he does not accept his smallness.
Together with a culture of work, there must be a culture of leisure as gratification. To put it another way: people who work must take the time to relax, to be with their families, to enjoy themselves, read, listen to music, play a sport.
Grace is not part of consciousness; it is the amount of light in our souls, not knowledge nor reason.
This is important: to get to know people, listen, expand the circle of ideas. The world is crisscrossed by roads that come closer together and move apart, but the important thing is that they lead towards the good.
Young people are just as attracted to the truth as they are convenience and expediency.
A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality. I replied with another question: ‘Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?’ We must always consider the person.
Money has to serve, not to rule.
Vanity, showing off, is an attitude that reduces spirituality to a worldly thing, which is the worst sin that could be committed in the church.
These days there is a lot of poverty in the world, and that’s a scandal when we have so many riches and resources to give to everyone. We all have to think about how we can become a little poorer.
Anyone who wants to be pope doesn’t care much for themselves, God doesn’t bless them. I didn’t want to be pope.
Human self-understanding changes with time, and so also human consciousness deepens.
Situations can change, people can change. Be the first to seek to bring good. Do not grow accustomed to evil, but defeat it with good.
Work ends up dehumanizing people.
If investments in banks fall, it is a tragedy, and people say, ‘What are we going to do?’ but if people die of hunger, have nothing to eat or suffer from poor health, that’s nothing.
We have observed that, in society and the world in which we live, selfishness has increased more than love for others, and that men of good will must work, each with his own strengths and expertise, to ensure that love for others increases until it is equal and possibly exceeds love for oneself.
In the Western Church to which I belong, priests cannot be married as in the Byzantine, Ukrainian, Russian or Greek Catholic Churches. In those churches, the priests can be married, but the bishops have to be celibate. They are very good priests.
This is the struggle of every person: be free or be a slave.
Living together is an art. It’s a patient art, it’s a beautiful art, it’s fascinating.
Where there is truth, there is also light, but don’t confuse light with the flash.
Indifference is dangerous, whether innocent or not.
Often it is better simply to slow down, to put aside our eagerness in order to see and listen to others, to stop rushing from one thing to another and to remain with someone who has faltered along the way.
If we start without confidence, we have already lost half the battle and we bury our talents.
The root of this possibility of doing good – that we all have – is in creation.
Pope Francis Quotes on Politics
There is a need for financial reform along ethical lines that would produce in its turn an economic reform to benefit everyone. This would nevertheless require a courageous change of attitude on the part of political leaders.
You cannot be in a position of power and destroy the life of another person.
Politics is a noble activity. We should revalue it, practise it with vocation and a dedication that requires testimony, martyrdom, that is to die for the common good.
Every man, every woman who has to take up the service of government, must ask themselves two questions: ‘Do I love my people in order to serve them better? Am I humble and do I listen to everybody, to diverse opinions in order to choose the best path?’ If you don’t ask those questions, your governance will not be good.
Politics, according to the Social Doctrine of the Church, is one of the highest forms of charity, because it serves the common good. I cannot wash my hands, eh? We all have to give something!
In Europe first and now in America, elected men have taken it upon themselves to indebt their people to create an atmosphere of dependency. And why? For their own selfish need to increase their own personal power.
The people of God want pastors, not clergy acting like bureaucrats or government officials.
I believe that Catholics involved in politics carry the values of their religion within them, but have the mature awareness and expertise to implement them. The Church will never go beyond its task of expressing and disseminating its values, at least as long as I’m here.
Politics is the most important of the civil activities and has its own field of action, which is not that of religion.
We don’t have to expect everything from those who govern us; that would be juvenile.
We need to remember and remind ourselves where we come from, what we are, our nothingness.
Pope Francis Quotes on God
If one has the answers to all the questions – that is the proof that God is not with him. It means that he is a false prophet using religion for himself. The great leaders of the people of God, like Moses, have always left room for doubt. You must leave room for the Lord, not for our certainties; we must be humble.
Find new ways to spread the word of God to every corner of the world.
God never gives someone a gift they are not capable of receiving. If he gives us the gift of Christmas, it is because we all have the ability to understand and receive it.
I believe in God – not in a Catholic God; there is no Catholic God. There is God, and I believe in Jesus Christ, his incarnation. Jesus is my teacher and my pastor, but God, the Father, Abba, is the light and the Creator. This is my Being.
I have a dogmatic certainty: God is in every person’s life. God is in everyone’s life. Even if the life of a person has been a disaster, even if it is destroyed by vices, drugs or anything else – God is in this person’s life. You can – you must – try to seek God in every human life.
Perhaps I can say that I am a bit astute, that I can adapt to circumstances, but it is also true that I am a bit naive. Yes, but the best summary, the one that comes more from the inside and I feel most true is this: I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.
Since God created the world, He also created reality.
Although the life of a person is in a land full of thorns and weeds, there is always a space in which the good seed can grow. You have to trust God.
From my point of view, God is the light that illuminates the darkness, even if it does not dissolve it, and a spark of divine light is within each of us.
To say that you can kill in the name of God is blasphemy.
If the Christian is a restorationist, a legalist, if he wants everything clear and safe, then he will find nothing. Tradition and memory of the past must help us to have the courage to open up new areas to God.
This is me, a sinner on whom the Lord has turned his gaze. And this is what I said when they asked me if I would accept my election as pontiff. I am a sinner, but I trust in the infinite mercy and patience of our Lord Jesus Christ, and I accept in a spirit of penance.
We must always walk in the presence of the Lord, in the light of the Lord, always trying to live in an irreprehensible way.
Right now, we don’t have a very good relation with creation.
In this quest to seek and find God in all things, there is still an area of uncertainty. There must be. If a person says that he met God with total certainty and is not touched by a margin of uncertainty, then this is not good.
God always has patience.
Worshipping the Lord means giving Him the place that he must have; worshipping the Lord means stating, believing – not only by our words – that He alone truly guides our lives; worshipping the Lord means that we are convinced before Him that He is the only God, the God of our lives, the God of our history.
Worshipping is stripping ourselves of our idols, even the most hidden ones, and choosing the Lord as the centre, as the highway of our lives.
God never tires of forgiving us, we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy.
The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone! ‘Father, the atheists?’ Even the atheists. Everyone!
First of all, you ask me if the God of Christians forgives one who doesn’t believe and doesn’t seek the faith. Premise that – and it’s the fundamental thing – the mercy of God has no limits if one turns to him with a sincere and contrite heart; the question for one who doesn’t believe in God lies in obeying one’s conscience.
Whenever we encounter another person in love, we learn something new about God.
We are impatient, anxious to see the whole picture, but God lets us see things slowly, quietly.
Pope Francis Quotes on Religion
A good Catholic meddles in politics, offering the best of himself, so that those who govern can govern. But what is the best that we can offer to those who govern? Prayer!
Truth, according to the Christian faith, is God’s love for us in Jesus Christ. Therefore, truth is a relationship.
I see the church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his blood sugars. You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything else.
In our ecclesiastical region there are priests who don’t baptize the children of single mothers because they weren’t conceived in the sanctity of marriage. These are today’s hypocrites. Those who clericalize the church. Those who separate the people of God from salvation.
I see clearly that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity.
Oh, how I would like a poor Church, and for the poor.
Every child that isn’t born, but is unjustly condemned to be aborted, has the face of Jesus Christ, has the face of the Lord.
A beautiful homily, a genuine sermon, must begin with the first proclamation, with the proclamation of salvation. There is nothing more solid, deep and sure than this proclamation.
Despite the slowness, the infidelity, the errors and sins it committed and might still commit against its members, the Church, trust me, has no other meaning and goal but to live and witness Jesus.
He who doesn’t pray to the Lord prays to the devil.
A church without women would be like the apostolic college without Mary. The Madonna is more important than the apostles, and the church herself is feminine, the spouse of Christ and a mother.
You cannot be a conscious Christian without St. Paul. He translated the teachings of Christ into a doctrinal structure that, even with the additions of a vast number of thinkers, theologians and pastors, has resisted and still exists after two thousand years.
Abortion isn’t a lesser evil, it’s a crime. Taking one life to save another, that’s what the Mafia does. It’s a crime. It’s an absolute evil.
When we walk without the cross, when we build without the cross and when we proclaim Christ without the cross, we are not disciples of the Lord. We are worldly. We may be bishops, priests, cardinals, popes, all of this, but we are not disciples of the Lord.
I entered the diocesan seminary. I liked the Dominicans, and I had Dominican friends. But then I chose the Society of Jesus, which I knew well because the seminary was entrusted to the Jesuits. Three things in particular struck me about the Society: the missionary spirit, community and discipline.
Let us all remember this: one cannot proclaim the Gospel of Jesus without the tangible witness of one’s life.
Jesus teaches us another way: Go out. Go out and share your testimony, go out and interact with your brothers, go out and share, go out and ask. Become the Word in body as well as spirit.
A Christian who does not pray for those who govern is not a good Christian.
The confessional is not a torture chamber, but the place in which the Lord’s mercy motivates us to do better.
The Church is or should go back to being a community of God’s people, and priests, pastors and bishops, who have the care of souls, are at the service of the people of God.
Instead of being just a church that welcomes and receives by keeping the doors open, let us try also to be a church that finds new roads, that is able to step outside itself and go to those who do not attend Mass, to those who have quit or are indifferent.
A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges is not Christian. This is not in the Gospel.
I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.
We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. The teaching of the church is clear, and I am a son of the church, but it is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time.
It makes me sad when I find sisters who aren’t joyful. They might smile, but with just a smile they could be flight attendants!
The Pope loves everyone, rich and poor alike, but the Pope has the duty, in Christ’s name, to remind the rich to help the poor, to respect them, to promote them.
You might say, ‘Can’t we have a more human Christianity, without the cross, without Jesus, without stripping ourselves?’ In this way we’d become pastry-shop Christians, like a pretty cake and nice sweet things. Pretty, but not true Christians.
There is a danger that threatens everyone in the church, all of us. The danger of worldliness. It leads us to vanity, arrogance and pride.
I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.
Instead of imposing new obligations, (Christians) should appear as people who wish to share their joy, who point to a horizon of beauty and who invite others to a delicious banquet.
Before all else, the Gospel invites us to respond to the God of love who saves us, to see God in others and to go forth from ourselves to seek the good of others.
One who believes may not be presumptuous; on the contrary, truth leads to humility, because believers know that, rather than ourselves possessing truth, it is truth that embraces and possesses us.
Interesting Facts about Pope Francis
After some deep quotes, it’s time to get to know the person a bit better. So, here are some interesting facts about Pope Francis that may even surprise some of you. Enjoy.
- The Love for Tango – Before he became a pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio simply loved to dance tango with his then girl-friend.
- Choosing the Name Francis – Jorge Mario Bergoglio chose the name Francis in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, who was born in Italy during the 12th century and was a Catholic friar.
- Master’s Degree in Chemistry – When thinking about the pope, one may think that he probably studied theology. However, you may be surprised to know, but Pope Francis actually studied for a master’s degree in chemistry and even taught it in high schools.
- His Days as a Bouncer – Way back when he was still living in Argentina, Francis worked as a bouncer in a bar.
- His Love for Cooking – Pope Francis loves to cook and he was known to cook and prepare his own meals. There’s even a rumour that he makes an extraordinary paella.
- No Stranger to Languages – Pope Francis speaks fluent in the following languages: Latin, Italian and Spanish. He’s also not too savvy when it comes to French, German, Ukrainian, Portuguese, and English.
- A Sports Fan – Pope Francis is a sports fan, especially football. He’s a fan of the San Lorenzo football team, being his hometown in Argentina. He even owns a huge collection of football shirts he has been given.
- His Love for Books – Pope Francis loves to read and has read and enjoyed The Lord of the Rings books as well as other books written by J. R. R. Tolkien.
For more memorable quotes from famous people, please visit our pages on Sylvia Plath quotes, Johnny Cash quotes, and Osho quotes.