# White smoke! We have a Pope! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 13, 2013, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838 "2013-03-13T18:10:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Simmerdown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simmerdown/32/14859_2.png) [@Simmerdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simmerdown)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/101 "2013-03-13T20:09:58Z")
Not sure if this is a topic for another thread, but, we know that choosing a name is one of the first things the new Pope does. But this guy wasn’t among the top runners. Does every cardinal have a name picked out on the off-chance they become Pope? Or did he go: “um, shit, um… ok, I dunno, FRANCIS! Yeah, Francis is good.” ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/102 "2013-03-13T20:11:07Z")
> [@zev\_steinhardt](#): > > Is it Francis I or just Francis? > > My understanding is that Popes who are the first to use a particular regnal name are NOT known as Pope … I (John Paul I being an exception). > > Zev Steinhardt Yes, that has been the standard usage - JP1 did it differently in order to make it clear he was not in the same sequence of prior Johns and Pauls. But we know people are going to stick the “First” on him anyway… ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/103 "2013-03-13T20:23:03Z")
> [@Simmerdown](#): > > But this guy wasn’t among the top runners. Does every cardinal have a name picked out on the off-chance they become Pope? Or did he go: “um, shit, um… ok, I dunno, FRANCIS! Yeah, Francis is good.” He was the runner up in 2005. And I’d guess that not only does every single person elevated to Cardinal ponder a papal “What if…?”, every single person ordained a priest does the same. ---
**Author:** ![ctnguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@ctnguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ctnguy)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/104 "2013-03-13T20:24:05Z")
> [@Don\_Draper](#): > > From **Wikipedia** (already a page for him. Wow) > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > He already has a [wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorge_Bergoglio)page AS POPE. There was already an article about him as a cardinal, and it was just renamed to “Pope Francis”. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/105 "2013-03-13T20:24:43Z")
How do we know he was runner up in 2005? The ballots are burnt. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/106 "2013-03-13T20:26:23Z")
If I were writing tomorrow’s headline, it’d be: **Tenemos Un Papa**. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/107 "2013-03-13T20:27:34Z")
He taught high school chemistry for a few years. Sounds like a very interesting guy with a background helping the poor. > **[World News: Latest International Headlines, Video, and Breaking Stories From...](https://www.nbcnews.com/world?lite)** > > Get the latest news, updates, and video from around the globe. > [@](#): > > Pope Francis I, the first man in the modern era from outside Europe to lead the Roman Catholic Church, prizes compassion, humility and simplicity — so much that he gave up his chauffeur in Argentina and took the bus to work. > [@](#): > > As archbishop, he had the option to live in a palace but chose a simple apartment, the profile said. He gave up a limousine for the bus, and cooks his own meals. > > In the first act of his papacy, he chose the name Francis — and becomes the namesake of St. Francis of Assisi, who gave up his riches and chose a life of poverty and prayer. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/108 "2013-03-13T20:27:48Z")
Pope Frank it is. Was this guy one of the names being bandied about? ---
**Author:** ![Simmerdown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simmerdown/32/14859_2.png) [@Simmerdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simmerdown)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/109 "2013-03-13T20:28:55Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > He was the runner up in 2005. And I’d guess that not only does every single person elevated to Cardinal ponder a papal “What if…?”, every single person ordained a priest does the same. Interesting. Is this common knowledge? I couldn’t find any info to that respect in a (brief) google search. IANAC (Catholic). ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/110 "2013-03-13T20:35:41Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=16034801&postcount=4](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=16034801&postcount=4) > > The above is from another Pope thread. Yeah, it was a shock to discover I had actually (and unknowingly) foretold his choice of name! ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/111 "2013-03-13T20:40:11Z")
Interesting coat of arms: > **[File:Coat of arms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio.svg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Coat_of_arms_of_Jorge_Mario_Bergoglio.svg)** > > Original file ‎(SVG file, nominally 1,148 × 1,218 pixels, file size: 490 KB) > Referencia gráfica: > Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. > You cannot overwrite this file. What does “Miserando atque eligendo” mean? ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/112 "2013-03-13T20:42:04Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Interesting coat of arms: > > [File:Coat of arms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio.svg - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Coat_of_arms_of_Jorge_Mario_Bergoglio.svg) > > What does “Miserando atque eligendo” mean? Lowly, and yet chosen. ETA: that is his coat of arms as cardinal, not as pope. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/113 "2013-03-13T20:43:35Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Interesting coat of arms: > > [File:Coat of arms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio.svg - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Coat_of_arms_of_Jorge_Mario_Bergoglio.svg) > > What does “Miserando atque eligendo” mean? “Lowly, and yet chosen,” [according to these people.](http://frrole.com/o/pope-francis-i-has-chosen-his-episcopal-frmanny-miami) ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/114 "2013-03-13T20:43:37Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Interesting coat of arms: > > [File:Coat of arms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio.svg - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Coat_of_arms_of_Jorge_Mario_Bergoglio.svg) > > What does “Miserando atque eligendo” mean? “Misery loves company.” Okay, kidding. Google says “Lowly, yet chosen.” ETA: Shouldn’t have taken the time to make the joke! ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/115 "2013-03-13T20:43:46Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > Pope Frank it is. “When I was seventy-six, it was a very good year…” ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/116 "2013-03-13T20:44:05Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > He taught high school chemistry for a few years. Sounds like a very interesting guy with a background helping the poor. His Wiki page says he has a masters degree in Chemistry. I wonder if he is the first Pope with a post-graduate science degree. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/117 "2013-03-13T20:46:14Z")
> [@Simmerdown](#): > > Interesting. Is this common knowledge? I couldn’t find any info to that respect in a (brief) google search. IANAC (Catholic). It’s mentioned on his wiki: > [@](#): > > During the 2005 Synod of Bishops, he was elected a member of the Post-Synodal council. Catholic journalist John L. Allen, Jr. reported that Bergoglio was a frontrunner in the 2005 Conclave. An unauthorized diary of uncertain authenticity released in September 2005[9] confirmed that Bergoglio was the runner-up and main challenger of Cardinal Ratzinger at that conclave. The purported diary of the anonymous cardinal claimed Bergoglio received 40 votes in the third ballot, but fell back to 26 at the fourth and decisive ballot. It’s all unverifiable, but I can’t imagine much reason to lie about that. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/118 "2013-03-13T20:46:25Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > “Misery loves company.” > > Okay, kidding. Google says “Lowly, yet chosen.” Jeez, talk about your humblebrags. “Aw shucks, li’l ole _me_?” ---
**Author:** ![Simmerdown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simmerdown/32/14859_2.png) [@Simmerdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simmerdown)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/119 "2013-03-13T20:49:49Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > It’s mentioned on his wiki: > > It’s all unverifiable, but I can’t imagine much reason to lie about that. Sorry, I meant the part about choosing names. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838/120 "2013-03-13T20:50:11Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > [http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/13/world/americas/latin-american-pope/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/13/world/americas/latin-american-pope/index.html) Thanks for saving me some typing, Duckster. I appreciate it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-smoke-we-have-a-pope/652838.md?page=7)