PilgrimageBy: Mark K. Shriver A down to earth and deeply intimate portrait of Pope Francis and his faith, based on interviews with the men and women who knew him simply as Jorge Mario Bergoglio Early on the evening of March 13, 2013, the newly elected Pope Francis stepped out onto the balcony of St. Peters Basilica and did something remarkable: Before he imparted his blessing to the crowd, he asked the crowd to bless him, then bowed low to receive this grace.