March 18, 2013 - Pope Francis on Monday put his diplomatic skills to the test, meeting
for the first time a head of state, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina,
his homeland. Holy See’s spokesman, Fr. Federico Lombardi told reporters that the
two leaders met privately for some 20 minutes at the Casa Santa Martha hostel for
the clergy inside Vatican City, where the Pope is temporarily residing until his apartment
in the Apostolic Palace is ready. Later, Pope Francis and President Cristina had
lunch together at Santa Martha. The meeting took place on the eve of the inauguration
of Pope Francis’ pontificate. Until his election as pontiff, Cardinal Jorge
Bergolio was Archbishop of Buenos Aires. The Argentine Church has clashed over the
government’s socially liberal policies. Fernandez and her predecessor and late husband,
Nestor Kirchner, defied church teaching to push through a series of measures with
popular backing in Argentina, including mandatory sex education in schools, free distribution
of contraceptives in public hospitals, and the right for transsexuals to change their
official identities on demand. Argentina in 2010 became the first Latin American
country to legalize same-sex marriages.