A family anecdote says that Mario Bergoglio’s first comment to catch his son on his lap shortly after his birth was: “Is it too early to take him in a San Lorenzo game?”
There is no record of which the first game would have been in which the boy was present. But the fact is that the young Jorge Bergoglio inherited from his family the passion for football and the Argentine club, maintained and fed for decades, even after that boy became the 26th Pope of the Catholic Church – known as Pope Francis.
Pope Francis died on Monday (21), at the age of 88, after a bilateral pneumonia staff from which he could not fully recover.
Son of a couple from Italians-Mario, former barter, and Regina, a housewife-who lived in the neighborhood of Flores, Buenos Aires, Francisco was 10 years old when she witnessed her heart club for the first time being Argentine champion in 1946.
The young man was part of the sea of fans who broke into the lawn to celebrate with the athletes the national title, the sixth of the club until then.
Years later, as an archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis used to celebrate masses in the most popular churches. But throughout April, San Lorenzo’s foundation anniversary, the ceremony in the club’s chapel.
Two years before going to the Vatican in 2011, he blessed the chapel Padre Lorenzo Massa, which names the Argentine team – the Massa Father was one of the main encouragement of a group of young people who founded the club in 1908.
Even away from his homeland, Francisco maintained a strong connection with the Argentine association. For a club with its roots linked to a priest, it seemed even a miracle to the unprecedented achievement of Libertadores in 2014 – a sequence of four Brazilian titles – a year after the Argentine was elected Pope.
“I watched the achievement with great joy, but it is not a miracle,” joked the pontiff.
After the title, the team’s cast traveled to the Vatican to show the Libertadores Cup to the Pope. “Being from San Lorenzo is part of my cultural identity,” said holiness, owner of the partner of club number 88235n -0.
The conquest of the continental tournament, however, was the last great moment of the Argentine team. After the Libertadores trophy, the team added only to the 2015 Argentine Super Cup to its gallery.
The connection with Francisco even helped to conquer new fans and partners, but this ended up not being reflected in sports results. Most of the club’s trophies were won before the Vatican elect the Argentine Pope.
San Lorenzo is the fifth team that was most often Argentine champion with 15 national trophies, the last one reached in 2013 – River Plate leads this list with 38, followed by Boca Juniors, with 35. Racing, 18, and Independent, with 16, complete the top five of the ranking.
In the international scenario, in addition to Libertadores, the Pope Club also won the South American in 2002 and was runner-up in 2014 and Vice South America twice in 2003 and 2015.
“From Jorge Mario Bergoglio to Francisco, there was something that has never changed: his love for Cyclone [apelido do San Lorenzo]”The club wrote in publication on his social networks in which he mourned the pontiff’s departure.
Francisco used sport as an example
San Lorenzo players were not the only athletes received by Francisco during his papacy. Messi, Maradona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Gaucho, Buffon, Lewis Hamilton, as well as athletes from various Olympic modalities also met the pontiff.
In his celebrations, the Pope, in time, used aspects of sport to pass messages, such as the ability to train team, which for the pontiff was a metaphor of social life.
“Individual actions are important, fantasy, creativity… but if the Individualism, so all the dynamics are arranged and the goal is not achieved, “said Francisco.
He also mentioned other sports values, such as honor, friendship, fraternity, loyalty and self -control and asked players not to forget the fans, especially young people, who mirror them.
“The role of the soccer player goes beyond sports and becomes successful and successful life model. Therefore, it is important for you to cultivate the spiritual and human qualities to be able to be a good example.”
