Pope Francis has released is autobiography "Hope". The book shares anecdotes from his life alongside his thoughts on the most trying issues of the era. View on euronews

The Catholic Church teaches that hope is one of the three theological virtues — along with faith and charity — which God pours into the hearts of the faithful.

Pope Francis launches a Jubilee of Hope with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica, symbolizing reconciliation and forgiveness.

The book, which was six years in the making, vividly recreates Francis’ childhood in Buenos Aires but offers few new insights into his papacy.

Reflecting on the Prologue of John’s Gospel, the Pope reminded the faithful that Jesus, the Word Incarnate, is ‘the light that shines in darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’

An introspective Pope Francis has divulged some of the behind-the-scenes dynamics of the secret 2013 conclave that elected him pope and the resistance he has encountered ever since, in his autobiography being released Tuesday that also doubles down on some of his more controversial decisions as pontiff.

Pope Francis was born in 1936, and grew up in Buenos Aires, in the barrio of Flores, a simple neighbourhood. After spells working in a sock factory, Francis became a Jesuit novice in 1958; he was ordained in 1969,