Pope Francis has made history by becoming the first pontiff to publish his life story while his office. Francis wrote “Hope” over a six-year period and originally intended for it to be published after his death.

Francis changed his mind about posthumously publishing it due to his belief that the needs of our times require he make his thoughts on his legacy and the state of the world available now.

It coincides with the beginning of a papal jubilee. A jubilee is held every 25 years in the Vatican and Francis has declared that this quarter century’s jubilee theme is “Pilgrims of Hope”, tying into the title of the book.

“Hope” covers the major events of Francis’ life. It starts with his heritage, how his Italian ancestors moved to South America to escape Mussolini’s fascist rule. Through this, the book covers not just the circumstances of his birth in Argentina, but the roots of his empathy towards those struggling under tyranny and forced into migration and forging a new life.

Born as Jorge Bergoglio in Buenos Aires in 1936, Francis is the first ever South American to become Pope of the Catholic Church. After covering his provenance, he moves into the providence that brought him to become a Jesuit priest.

It all leads up to the conclave that elected Francis to the throne of the Holy See. Francis came second in the 2005 conclave in which Benedict XVI succeeded.

Benedict’s papacy famously ended in controversy when he abdicated the throne, a move that was hitherto unprecedented in the modern era. The last pope to renunciate his title was Gregory XII in 1415.

Much of Benedict’s time as Pope was marred by the child sex abuse scandals that were first revealed under previous Pope John Paul II’s reign.

Francis was elected Pope in 2013 and brought a new approach to the throne. His less formal manner has lent his papacy a more remonstrative approach to theology, opening the church up to new levels of pluralism – showing more compassion than predecessors to homosexuality and the divorced, while still rejecting the suggestion of female priests.

Sticklers will say that his book isn’t actually the first papal memoir from Francis, let alone another Pope to be published. Last year he released the memoir “Life: My Story Through History” which delved into pivotal moments of his life intertwined with global events, including World War II, the Argentine military regime, and Vatican politics.

However, as a full autobiography aimed at covering the entire life of the 88-year-old Pope, “Hope” remains a unique moment in the history of the Catholic Church. Francis has been aided by a wheelchair in the past few years, yet his reign defined by a more relaxed style towards the public, rolls on.

As reviews come in for “Hope”, literary critics have found that the autobiography is a “remarkable” story of a man, although it leaves things “frustratingly not explained” says Catherine Pepinster for the Guardian.

For the FT, Henry Mance notes as well that while omissions are “frustrating”, overall its “enthusiasm for human interaction is […] surprisingly hard to resist.”

Similarly, the New York Times finds that the book “vividly recreates Francis’ childhood in Buenos Aires but offers few new insights into his papacy.”

Pope Francis has made history by becoming the first pontiff to publish his life story while his office. Francis wrote “Hope” over a six-year period and originally intended for it to be published after his death.

Francis changed his mind about posthumously publishing it due to his belief that the needs of our times require he make his thoughts on his legacy and the state of the world available now.

It coincides with the beginning of a papal jubilee. A jubilee is held every 25 years in the Vatican and Francis has declared that this quarter century’s jubilee theme is “Pilgrims of Hope”, tying into the title of the book.

“Hope” covers the major events of Francis’ life. It starts with his heritage, how his Italian ancestors moved to South America to escape Mussolini’s fascist rule. Through this, the book covers not just the circumstances of his birth in Argentina, but the roots of his empathy towards those struggling under tyranny and forced into migration and forging a new life.

Born as Jorge Bergoglio in Buenos Aires in 1936, Francis is the first ever South American to become Pope of the Catholic Church. After covering his provenance, he moves into the providence that brought him to become a Jesuit priest.

It all leads up to the conclave that elected Francis to the throne of the Holy See. Francis came second in the 2005 conclave in which Benedict XVI succeeded.

Benedict’s papacy famously ended in controversy when he abdicated the throne, a move that was hitherto unprecedented in the modern era. The last pope to renunciate his title was Gregory XII in 1415.

Much of Benedict’s time as Pope was marred by the child sex abuse scandals that were first revealed under previous Pope John Paul II’s reign.

Francis was elected Pope in 2013 and brought a new approach to the throne. His less formal manner has lent his papacy a more remonstrative approach to theology, opening the church up to new levels of pluralism – showing more compassion than predecessors to homosexuality and the divorced, while still rejecting the suggestion of female priests.

Sticklers will say that his book isn’t actually the first papal memoir from Francis, let alone another Pope to be published. Last year he released the memoir “Life: My Story Through History” which delved into pivotal moments of his life intertwined with global events, including World War II, the Argentine military regime, and Vatican politics.

However, as a full autobiography aimed at covering the entire life of the 88-year-old Pope, “Hope” remains a unique moment in the history of the Catholic Church. Francis has been aided by a wheelchair in the past few years, yet his reign defined by a more relaxed style towards the public, rolls on.

As reviews come in for “Hope”, literary critics have found that the autobiography is a “remarkable” story of a man, although it leaves things “frustratingly not explained” says Catherine Pepinster for the Guardian.

For the FT, Henry Mance notes as well that while omissions are “frustrating”, overall its “enthusiasm for human interaction is […] surprisingly hard to resist.”

Similarly, the New York Times finds that the book “vividly recreates Francis’ childhood in Buenos Aires but offers few new insights into his papacy.”