The world is mourning the death of Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday at the age of 88, after suffering a stroke. Even after his passing, his legacy lives on, as we’ve seen him make history time and time again and set many records along the way, including these five.
First Latin American Pope
Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and he made history as the first Latin American pontiff, in addition to being the first pope from the Americas and the Southern Hemisphere.
First Jesuit Pope
He was also the first person from the Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuit Order, to be elected pope.
Canonized the Most Saints
At over 900, Pope Francis set the record for canonizing the maximum number of saints, including the former popes John XXIII, John Paul II and Paul VI, plus such important figures as Mother Teresa and Óscar Romero.
Largest Papal Event
Pope Francis’ visit to the Philippines in 2015 was one for the history books, and it broke the record for the largest papal event in history after six to seven million people gathered for his final Mass at Manila.
First Pope on Instagram
Pope Francis had a pretty active social media presence, and he became the first pope to join Instagram in 2016, gaining over one million followers in under 12 hours on this photo-sharing platform.