Did Pope Francis Ever Dream of Becoming Pope?
For years, speculation has swirled around Pope Francis’ early years, with conflicting accounts about whether he ever aspired to lead the Catholic Church. His sister, María Elena Bergoglio, once dismissed the idea, recalling private family conversations where they joked about it. “No, please no,” he would insist. But another version of events, told by someone from his past, suggests a more romantic twist.
A Childhood Crush That Could Have Changed History
Long before he entered the priesthood, Pope Francis—then simply Jorge Bergoglio—was a young boy growing up in Buenos Aires. One woman from his childhood, Amalia Damonte, recalled an innocent yet dramatic moment between them.
She claimed that when they were just 12 years old, he had feelings for her. In an interview from 2013, she shared that young Jorge once told her, “If I can’t marry you, I’ll become a priest.”
She also recalled receiving a handwritten note from him, featuring a drawing of a little white house with a red roof. Underneath, he had written, “This is what I’ll buy when we marry.”
While it may have been nothing more than a childhood crush, Damonte’s parents took it seriously. Her father was furious, and her mother intervened immediately. “She came to get me at school and said, ‘So, you’re getting letters from a boy?!’” From that moment on, her parents made sure they were kept apart.
Looking back, Damonte brushed off the whole situation, saying it was never real love. “I only knew love when I was much older,” she explained.
A Surprising Moment of Fate
Years passed, and their lives took very different paths. Damonte eventually got married and raised a family, while Bergoglio entered the priesthood. But she later reflected on an interesting twist: Had he stayed at his local church a few months longer, he might have been the priest officiating her wedding.
When she learned that her childhood acquaintance had been elected Pope, she was stunned. “I froze in front of the television,” she admitted. “I couldn’t believe that Jorge was the Pope.”
