For the first time in the Church’s 2000-year-old history, an American has been elected as the Pope. Following a lengthy two day process that required the convening of a papal conclave that included 133 cardinal electors over 70 countries, Cardinal Prevost emerged as the consensus candidate, and white smoke was billowing over the Sistine Chapel.
Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, is originally from Chicago. However, he has spent most of his life in Latin America, most notably in Peru, where he is also a citizen. Pope Leo XIV was born in Chicago to immigrant parents of Spanish and Franco-Italian descent. “I was born in the United States… But my grandparents were all immigrants. French, Spanish… I was raised in a very Catholic family, both of my parents were very engaged in the parish,” he said.
He was ordained in 1982 at the age of 27 after working as an altar boy and moved to Peru in 1985 as a missionary. Through his work in Peru, he became a bishop in 2014, acted as the head of the worldwide Augustinian order from 2001 to 2013, and was made an archbishop in early 2023 and a cardinal by former Pope Francis a few months later.
A lot of the focus on Pope Leo XIV revolved around his political views and which direction he will take the clergy. While Prevost has not been extremely active on social media and sharing his political views, it is known that he disdains MAGA — JD Vance and Trump — supports immigration, but is heavily against the LGBTQ+ community and their beliefs. In his first public address after being elected as pope, Pope Leo XIV emphasized themes of unity, compassion, and inclusivity, greeting the crowd with the words, “Peace be with all of you!”
Criticism has also been brought around the Pope’s actions that have supposedly protected sexual offenders within the clergy. According to BBC, “Accusations have been made about his handling of sexual abuse cases during his time as Bishop of Chiclayo. Three Peruvian women are among those who went public with claims that — as bishop — he failed to investigate and punish a priest accused of sexually abusing them, with claims dating back to 2007.”
Regarding the history of the name Pope Leo XIV has chosen, Leo has been a relatively common name for a pope with thirteen predecessors before the most recent one. The last Pope Leo was french born, having served as Pope from 1878 to 1903, which was the 4th longest papacy in history. The former Pope Leo was a prominent supporter of social teaching, having written a famous letter “Rerum Novarum” which was a reflection of the Industrial Revolution on the state of the church.
Looking ahead, the whole world will be watching how Pope Leo will continue Pope Francis’ legacy as he addresses the issue of the role of the Catholic church in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.
