Pope is the designation given to the supreme head of the Roman Catholic Church, also known as Supreme Pontiff, Holy Father or Bishop of Rome.
In addition to being the highest representative of Catholic doctrine, the pope is also considered the Head of State of Vatican City, an independent and sovereign city-state that is located in the interior of Rome, capital of Italy.
Currently, the leader of the Catholic Church is the Pope Francis (266th pope), elected during a conclave (meeting of cardinals) in 2013, with the aim of choosing a successor to the place left by Benedict XVI.
According to the records of the Catholic religion, the first pope would have been Saint Peter, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ.
Popes hold an ecclesiastical office known as papacy, as if it were a kind of government, compared to a presidential regime, for example.
In the past, popes wielded great power among Western societies in the Middle Ages, especially in Europe. Nowadays, however, the power of the clergy, especially the pope, is limited to ecumenism, to the establishment of dialogues. peacemakers between the different religions existing in the world, and the fight for human rights (according to the doctrines of the religion Catholic).
Etymologically, the word "pope" originated directly from the Latin pappa, which can be translated as an affectionate form of “daddy” or “father”. In this case, the "father" is a reference to the position that the pope plays in the image of the "Catholic family".
Learn more about meaning of the catholic church.