In PHOTOS: The new pope's first day on the job

Pope Francis I is known for his distaste for flamboyance and on his first day on the job he made this very clear. 

He eschewed the red cape that his preceder Benedict XVI wore when he was presented to the world for first time in 2005, In fact, the new pope, a Jesuit, chose the simple white cassock of the papacy.

In his first hours as Pope Francis I, the leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, shunned a chauffer driven 'Vatican One' limousine and opted for a simple minibus to visit a Roman basilica dedicated to Mother Mary.

And that's not all. The former Archbishop of Buenos Aires stopped by his hotel to pick up his luggage and paid the bill himself.

In his first mass with the cardinals who elected him pontiff, he warned the Catholic Church would become "a compassionate NGO" without spiritual renewal. "We would end up a compassionate NGO. What would happen would be like when children make sand castles and then it all falls down," he said, according to the BBC.

Here's a look at the new pope's first day on the job.

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Newly elected Pope Francis I, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, leads a a mass with cardinals at the Sistine Chapel, in a picture released by Osservatore Romano at the Vatican yesterday.

In his first public mass, Pope Francis urged the Catholic Church on Thursday to stick to its Gospel roots and shun modern temptations, warning that it would become just another charitable group if it forgot its true mission.

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Two nuns watch Pope Francis celebrate mass with the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel, as it is shown on a screen in St Peter's square in Rome, Italy yesterday. Thousands gathered in St Peter's Square to watch the announcement of the first ever Latin American Pontiff it has been announced that Pope Francis' inauguration mass will be held on March 19, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis I makes a private visit to the 5th-century Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, in a photo released by Osservatore Romano in Rome yesterday.

Pope Francis, barely 12 hours after his election, quietly left the Vatican early on Thursday to pray for guidance as he looks to usher a Roman Catholic Church mired in intrigue and scandal into a new age of simplicity and humility.

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Pope Francis I prays before an icon of Mary during a private visit to the 5th-century Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, in a photo released by Osservatore Romano in Rome.

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Pope Francis I walks in the 5th-century Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore during a private visit in Rome.

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Pope Francis I waves from the steps of the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica in Rome. At left is Cardinal Santos Abril of Spain and Cardinal Agostino Vallini, Vicar General of Rome at right.

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Pope Francis I leaves after praying at the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica in Rome.

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