Pope Francis named Time magazine's Person of the YearDecember 11, 2013 - 18:26 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Pope Francis has capped off his first calendar year in one of the globe's highest offices by winning Time magazine's Person of the Year award, Belfast Telegraph said. The first ever Jesuit pontiff emerged victorious from a shortlist including pop music's twerker-in-chief Miley Cyrus, Syria's civil war-waging leader Bashar al-Assad and NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. Explaining the award, the magazine wrote: "Rarely has a new player on the world stage captured so much attention so quickly - young and old, faithful and cynical - as has Pope Francis. "In his nine months in office, he has placed himself at the very centre of the central conversations of our time: about wealth and poverty, fairness and justice, transparency, modernity, globalisation, the role of women, the nature of marriage, the temptations of power." The Argentinian, formerly Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, last graced the U.S. title's front page upon his election as Pope in March this year. Since then he has adopted a markedly humble tone, softening the doctrinaire approach of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, particularly in the Church's staunch opposition to homosexuality. In July he made headlines on that topic, asking reporters: "If someone is gay and is looking for the Lord, who am I to judge him?" He has begun a crackdown on Vatican corruption and called for greater financial transparency. The charismatic and ‘down to earth’ pontiff claims to owe his life to a nun, who saved him whilst he was suffering from a lung recurring lung problem when he was just 21. Francis disclosed in a new book, I Fioretti di Papa Francesco (The Little Flowers of Pope Francis), how a nun tripled his dose of antibiotics after she realised his doctor was not prescribing enough. He also made headlines all over the world after moving photographs showed him embracing man severely disfigured by disease. He has called for global leaders to fight poverty and inequality and attacked unfettered capitalism as “a new tyranny.” Social media phenomenon Francis was recently revealed to be the most popular topic globally on Facebook in 2013, ahead of the royal baby Prince George, the Harlem Shake and Ms Cyrus. His election in March drove more conversation than any other event this year on the site. Related links: Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | About 32,000 rally in Yerevan to deman Pashinyan’s resignation About 31,700 people attended an opposition rally on Thursday, May 9 in Yerevan demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Viva-MTS: Tech solutions to modernize infrastructure of border village The border village has been the focus of Viva-MTS and the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Values since 2015. Ucom's fixed network launched in Artashat To mark this occasion, the company has introduced a special offer exclusively for Artashat residents. “By Your Side”: IDBank's new support program for displaced Artsakh citizens IDBank is launching a long-term social support program for forcibly displaced Artsakh residents. |