Why did Pope Francis never return to Argentina during his papacy?

When former Archbishop Buenos -Aires, Jorge Mario Bergolio, left the Argentine capital to participate in the Vatican Conclave to choose the successor of Pope Benedict XVI, he did not know what it would be the last time he saw his hometown.

The fact that Pope Francis never returned to his country after becoming the Pontiff left several Argentines with a heavy heart.

Speaking on Monday, Archbishop Buenos -Aires Jorge Ignacio Garcia said that his parish was “his father’s orphans who deeply loved his country and had to learn to become a father of the whole world.”

He also added that Francis was becoming the Pope “worth a little Argentine … Bergolio left us to become Francis.”

For many, this is unexpected – including Bergolio himself – that he was chosen in the highest position in the Catholic Church in the first place.

According to analysts, at the age of 76 – a year older than the typical age of bishops and cardinals, when they resign the Pope – he was not regarded as a real candidate to fill the vacancy.

“When he left Buenos -Aires for the conclave, he seemed a bit sad; he was preparing to retire in the house in the House of Priests in the Buenos -Aires Flores,” said Guillermo Marko, a priest from the Archdiocese of Buenos -Arez, Argentine.

However, Bergolio will soon start a papacy, which lasted 12 years.

His death was especially acute in his home country, where seven days of national mourning were announced – when Argentina expels a person who is considered to be simple and modest, despite the fact that they keep one of the most powerful offices in the world.

These qualities were evaluated by Eleanir Ramazole, a nun, who talked to BBC Mundo on Monday during the Benas -Aires Cathedral.

The fact that he did not return to his homeland was “a sign of complete commitment, which he took to the whole church, not just his people,” said Ms Ramazole.

Gustav Vera exchanged hundreds of letters with Francis, making friends with him when he was still an archbishop. He agreed that the Pontiff always showed a strong interest in what was happening in his home country.

“Sometimes he commented on football, sometimes at tango, sometimes at cultural events,” said Mr. Vera, leader of La-Alameda, Argentinean organization and slavery. Francis followed the Argentine news, he added.

During his papacy, Francis visited four of the five countries bordering on Argentina, but never his home country, despite the fact that he continues to be interested.

He was loved by many who now mourn him, but others remember him as a contradictory figure.

The initial honor of most Argentines after the announcement that fellow countrymen will become the first Latin American Pope, who gave way to disappoint among some years.

The Pew Research Center suggested that the proportion of people who had a positive view of the pontiff decreased from 91% in 2013 to 64% in 2024.

Of the six Latin American polled in Argentina, the greatest decline in favorable relations was recorded.

Conservatives in Argentina accused him of undermining the historical traditions they had the saint, while the reformers hoped for deeper changes.

Critics considered that in the 1970s and 1980s he was unable to withstand the brutal military dictatorship of the country and criticize the complicity of some figures in the church.

Each time he was asked about a possible journey, Pope Francis gave unclear answers.

“I would like to go. This is my people, but it was not planned yet. There are several things in September 2024,” he said for the last time he was publicly asked about this topic.

Some colleagues -argents considered it a hesitation difficult to understand.

In recent years, the absence of the pantifus has felt more acute because Argentina had undergone a deep economic crisis, with annual inflation reached almost 300% and a sharp increase in poverty.

Mr. Vera believes that Francis planned to visit, but he had not yet done it because he wanted to avoid using his presence for political purposes.

“He always said he went to Argentina when he felt that he was an instrument to achieve national unity to help overcome the gap to try to return Argentines,” Mr. Vera said.

The “gap” refers to the huge, decades of the bay in Argentine policy and society between supporters and opponents of the populist political movement of Peronism, founded by the late President Juan Pron in the 1940s.

There is a broad belief in the country that Pope Francis was overdoing – what he denied in the book in 2023, adding: “If we had a retained policy concept, what would it be?”

The comment was confiscated by conservative detractors who accused him of too closely with the reasons for social justice and leftist policy.

Before his post, Javier Mille, the current president, who demonized his left politics, even called Pope Francis “a representation of evil on earth” – although he softened his tone after coming to power.

They held a heartfelt meeting in the Vatican, and President Milie officially invited the Pontiff to Argentina. And after Pope Mille’s death, he said he was very painful in his loss, and praised the kindness and wisdom of the pantiff.

Some Argentines accused him of being too close to Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, a separate politician-Levo politician who was president from 2007 to 2015.

After the death of Pope Mille, he said he was very painful in his loss, and praised the favor and wisdom of the pantiff.

Some Argentines accused him of being too close to Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, a separate politician-Levo politician who was president from 2007 to 2015.

But, according to Mr. Vera, the Pope met with people “from all the political and social spectrum of Argentina.”

A friend of the late Pantif also noted that, although the media and large city centers were criticized by Pope Francis and large urban centers, he was loved in other parts of the country.

Despite the fact that he supported the connection with Argentina, Mr. Vera said, Pope Francis no longer felt that he was only one country.

“Argentines believe he is Argentine, but in reality he was a citizen of the world,” he added.

This is the opinion that was shared by Alejandro Castro, a social worker who was among the mourning, who gathered at the Buenos Cathedral on Monday.

Argentina was “always in her prayers,” said Ms. Castro. “One way or another he has always attended, and I think it shows that Argentina has always been present in his heart.”

But Mr. Vera admitted that not everyone felt equally, and suggested that Argentines needed to seek answers: “Instead of blaming Francis, we should ask Argentines what we were doing, what we did not deserve the Pope’s visit.”