Pope Francis' Hope

According to Carlo Musso, the co-author of the book “Hope,” the autobiography of Pope Francis was originally intended to be published after his death.

- ELFREN S. CRUZ

However, because of the Jubilee of Hope in 2025, the pope was moved to make this book available now.

The work on the writing of the book began in 2019 and was the fruit of numerous meetings, conversations and the study of public and private documents. The title page of the book carries the author’s name, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis with Carlo Musso and translated from the original Italian “Spera” by Richard Dixon (Random House, New York, 2025).

The book begins in the early years of the 20th century with Pope Francis’ Italian roots and his ancestors’ immigration to Argentina. It essentially tells the story of his life from his childhood days in Buenos Aires through his days of youth and his call to the priesthood. A major part of the book, of course, is devoted to his days in the priesthood and as a cardinal and finally his papacy.

An interesting addition to the book is the collection of photographs of Pope Francis as a baby, as a little boy, as a first communicant, as a priest and at significant moments of his papacy.