The nephew of Pope Francis has revealed how the future pontiff broke the news to his mother that he was not after all going to be a doctor, but wished instead to be a priest.
Jose Ignacio Bergoglio said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper ABC that his grandmother Regina did not at first take the news well because Jorge Bergoglio was the eldest child.
She had believed that once he got into medicine as a career, he would enjoy it.
"My uncle had promised my grandmother he was going to study medicine, but eventually chose to heal souls," he said, describing how Regina went into her son's study and to her surprise found he was applying for the seminary. She also found theology books in Latin.
Jose's grandmother said: "Jorge, you lied to me." Her son replied: "No, mum, I do study medicine, medicine for the soul."
Jose, the son of Maria Elena, the only living sister of Pope Francis, painted a portrait of his uncle the Pope as an adviser, the biggest joker of the family, and a lover of cooking, tango and football.
He said Pope Francis had discovered his vocation on a spring day when on a picnic with friends. He had planned to declare his love to a girl he liked but went to the Church of San Jose del barrio of Flores in Buenos Aires, talked to the priest and "discovered that his true love was God." He never actually had a girlfriend and the Pope's own grandmother Rosa taught him to pray.
Jose said: "Our family has been and is very religious. His parents passed on the values that have also come to us grandchildren. With this background my uncle found his calling."
Francis has inspired and advised him in setting up his own charitable project to help the needy in Argentina. And far from losing contact with his family since the move to Rome, Jose said that he is more in touch than before.
They talk about "life", he said. "If I am about to embark on a solidarity trip I ask him to pray for us. We speak little of his professional work, perhaps specific things as trips and I ask what he was feeling and so on. But mostly we give updates on how we are."
Despite his strong popularity on social media, the Pope never uses Whatsapp or similar.
"Ha, ha, ha ! Nooo ! He is zero technology," said Jose. "He calls from the Vatican landline."
He also said his uncle had never wanted to be Pope, in keeping with the tradition of humility of his Jesuit order. He had wanted to be a missionary but health problems prevented that. Once he had been called to Rome he accepted it as "God's plan".
Jose added: "I believe the Holy Spirit is working in him and that is why he looks so rejuvenated, loose, free and happy in everything he does."
