New Pope is Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis I
By: NBC News
Updated: March 13, 2013
VATICAN CITY - Cardinal Bergoglio was named leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics on Wednesday.
Minutes earlier, white smoke rose above the Sistine Chapel and bells rang out across Rome, prompting cheers and wild applause from the crowd of tens of thousands gathered in St Peter's Square in front of the Vatican.
He was introduced to the world - in Latin - from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica.
Smoke billowed from the chimney at 7:07 p.m. (2:07 p.m. ET) on the second day of behind-closed-doors voting and marked the beginning to a new era for a church combating scandal and internal strife.
The cardinals are thought to have taken five ballots to reach the two-third majority necessary for a decision.
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