In commemorating the figure of Pope Francis, who passed away recently, we wish to remember his deep Italian roots , and in particular Piedmontese, which marked his personal history and that of his family.

The Pope, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was the son of Italian emigrants1 . His paternal grandparents, Giovanni and Rosa Bergoglio, lived in Bricco Marmorito di Porta Comaro station, a hamlet of Asti. The living conditions in Italy in the 20s, even in Piedmont, were so difficult that many people emigrated. Giovanni Bergoglio, after unsuccessful attempts in agriculture and with a small food shop that did not have the hoped-for success, decided to follow his brothers who had already emigrated to Argentina.

His son, Mario Bergoglio, the Pope’s future father, had a job in Italy: he had been hired by the Bank of Italy in the Asti branch in December 1926, as soon as he graduated as an accountant. Although he was considered a young man “gifted with intelligence and very intent on doing well”, capable and assiduous, his salary was modest for the time: 300 lire per month initially, which rose to 350 lire in 19281. It was precisely Mario’s meager salary combined with the optimism of relatives who had already emigrated to Argentina that convinced Giovanni Bergoglio to leave.

On February 1, 1929, the Bergoglio family – Giovanni, Rosa and their son Mario – embarked in Genoa on the steamship Giulio Cesare bound for Buenos Aires. It was in the Argentine capital that Mario Bergoglio met and married Queen Maria. Less than a year later, in 1936, their first child, Jorge Mario, our beloved Pope, was born in Argentina.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio was thus the first Pope from Latin America, a figure who emerged from a history of emigration that led him to be born far from Europe, “almost from the end of the world” as he himself implicitly recalled on the occasion of his election. Despite the geographical distance, Pope Francis has never forgotten his Italian origins, the history of his emigrant parents and the teachings of his Piedmontese grandmother.

This life experience probably influenced his sensitivity towards the least and his constant emphasis on the value of love for one’s neighbor and acceptance for those in need.

The story of the Bergoglio family is one of many that tells the story of Piedmontese emigration around the world.

To learn more about his origins and his parents’ journey, you can watch the video: