U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost is Pope Leo XIV (Pope Francis has passed away)

He speaks English, Italian and Spanish, has taught in all three languages, is an accomplished educator, administrator, worked in the Vatican, was an advisor to Pope Francis, was a missionary for years in Peru where I'm sure he encountered The Shining Path so understands terrorists. One commentator today said he may be the most well-rounded Pope in centuries.
 
The sign of confidence from Francis speaks to Prevost's commitment as a missionary in Peru to the "peripheries"
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"Well, Father, I was thinking of those priests that work in very poor areas"

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PRlady said:
I noted that John Paul had a huge impact on history, not that I hope Leo brings down another country. There are many ways to have impact.

I would not be surprised, however, if he was chosen partially as a very visible counterweight to the other American leader impacting the world.
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I think that is exactly why.

I believe in balance of power. If one group/one person has too much, let others have some influence, like you said, as a counterweight
 
PRlady said:
Some Popes seem most interested in leading the Church along specific theological lines, like Benedict. Others like John Paul, Francis and apparently the last Leo who really brought the Church to a social justice stance, seem as interested in impacting the larger world. We’ll see.
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Oh yeah, I totally agree that some popes are more about action in the world and others more about theology only. I was only thinking that I was not so sure that the cardinals intentionally were trying to elect someone who would be active in the larger world, vs.more theologically inwardly focused.
 
rfisher said:
He speaks English, Italian and Spanish, has taught in all three languages, is an accomplished educator, administrator, worked in the Vatican, was an advisor to Pope Francis, was a missionary for years in Peru where I'm sure he encountered The Shining Path so understands terrorists. One commentator today said he may be the most well-rounded Pope in centuries.
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He also has an undergraduate degree in mathematics. He’s a smart cookie.
 
skategal said:
He also has an undergraduate degree in mathematics. He’s a smart cookie.
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Hey, history, sociology and psych grads are smart too ;)



Karen-W said:
Roman Catholic cardinals are still mere mortals. We're not infallible. It isn't as if every single Pope has been a good person or even particularly holy. Surely you've seen The Borgias. ?

I'm not a fan of open borders and I take issue with what is known of his position on that subject in particular. As someone raised in a mainline Protestant denomination, I'm less bothered by some of the moves Francis made toward a more open, welcoming Church - and I know some of those moves, synodality specifically, really bothered a lot of conservative Catholics.

What I do hope is that Leo XIV is a better administrator for the Church than Francis is reported to have been.
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We are all mere mortals. And many politicians or even super successful sport stars aren't nice either.
 
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I was in a chat with my Peruvian daughter about something unrelated as he was speaking in Spanish, and mentioned the shout-out to his diocese of Chiclayo (one of her current projects is in Chiclayo, and she was just there). I've been thinking of him as the first Peruvian pope even more than the first American.
 
I'm old enough to remember what a huge deal it was when John Paul II was elected pope (first non-Italian pope in centuries, I think?).

So, given that, I'm amazed to see an American now actually elected pope. ? I for sure never expected to see that in my lifetime. It is definitely an exciting, if quite unexpected, moment for American Catholics.

I'm mostly glad, however, that he is one of Francis's men and not one of the American conservatives promoted by JP II.
 
Some were saying the Vatican is broke and he did good job as administrator in Peru so even Africans were lot an American handle the money.

But he is also seen as Peruvian. Scott Hahn who is big time American Catholic speaker had no idea who he was. Because all of his career was in Peru

I think any other American wouldn't have happened
 
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rfisher said:
He speaks English, Italian and Spanish, has taught in all three languages, is an accomplished educator, administrator, worked in the Vatican, was an advisor to Pope Francis, was a missionary for years in Peru where I'm sure he encountered The Shining Path so understands terrorists. One commentator today said he may be the most well-rounded Pope in centuries.
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skategal said:
He also has an undergraduate degree in mathematics. He’s a smart cookie.
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And a doctorate in canon law, which he earned in Rome. He is very well rounded in terms of his education, his experiences and talents, and his ability to speak to many Catholics in their own languages.

We really have no idea why he was selected as Pope. Different cardinals may have had different reasons. Maybe his missionary background. Maybe his administrative work. Maybe his experiences with different languages and his work in many different countries. Maybe his concerns about the poor, mistreated, and persecuted. Maybe his views about women and gay people. Maybe his desire to maintain and expand the Catholic church in different areas of the world and different generations in light of the modern world. Maybe a combination of these things or something else entirely.
 
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skategal said:
He also has an undergraduate degree in mathematics. He’s a smart cookie.
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He’ll need to be in the Byzantine world that is the Vatican. Something interesting to me: He wasn’t on a lot of watch lists and why would he be?? He was only made archbishop in 2023 and cardinal in 2024. That is one hell of an ascent.
 
Cachoo said:
He’ll need to be in the Byzantine world that is the Vatican. Something interesting to me: He wasn’t on a lot of watch lists and why would he be?? He was only made archbishop in 2023 and cardinal in 2024. That is one hell of an ascent.
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The New York Times had him on its list. Here is an article about why he might be selected.

There’s Never Been a Pope From the U.S. Could This Cardinal Change That? https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/....2ySc.1cOginJN21lL&smid=nytcore-android-share

Yet one American some Vatican watchers say could scrape together enough votes is Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69, a Chicago-born polyglot who is viewed as a churchman who transcends borders. He served for two decades in Peru, where he became a bishop and a naturalized citizen, then rose to lead his international religious order. He now holds one of the most influential Vatican posts.
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I'm not Catholic, nor remotely religious, but historically, the Catholic Church's influence in Europe and South America has shaped the countries that exist today. Some of it very badly, especially in South and Mesoamerica. But, if a somewhat liberal Pope can have a positive influence in today's world, I'm glad he was appointed to the job. The rise of totalitarianism needs a balance, which is ironic as the 14th and 15th century church was about as totalitarian as could be, especially in Spain.
 
once_upon said:
If the Vatican is broke, I'm from Mars or Jupiter.

We toured the Vatican - there is so much golf and other precious stones - it even enraged my husband to see such oppulance.
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They cannot sell those they belong to Italy too. The Italian government would never let the Vatican sell that art
 
Wyliefan said:
Interesting -- he has African ancestry as well as French and Spanish.
www.blackcatholicmessenger.org

White smoke, Black pope? Pope Leo XIV, first American pontiff, has African roots

Previously unknown genealogy on the 69-year-old Chicago native was revealed by genealogists shortly after white smoke rose in St. Peter's Square.
www.blackcatholicmessenger.org www.blackcatholicmessenger.org
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Our local New Orleans media is eating this up. And everyone around here is digging into Ancestry.com to see if they’re related to the pope. ?
 
Mr. BarbK and I agree that Pope Leo is remarkably young. Really young. A week older than Mr. BarbK, and four weeks older than moi. That makes him young, right?

Weird to think that we were all in first grade at the same time. I wonder if his Catholic school had 55 kids in the first grade classroom? Mine did.
 
Cachoo said:
He’ll need to be in the Byzantine world that is the Vatican. Something interesting to me: He wasn’t on a lot of watch lists and why would he be?? He was only made archbishop in 2023 and cardinal in 2024. That is one hell of an ascent.
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He was mentioned by at least one fairly prominent Catholic YouTuber as a papabile, so I had him in the back of my mind, though he wasn't considered a major contender. But I couldn't quite believe it when I heard "Prevost" because, like the rest of the world, who would have ever expected an American cardinal being elected?

And now, the answer to the most pressing question of all (save the Chicago deep-dish v East Coast thin crust pizza one, lol) - despite claims made earlier in the day that he's a Cubs fan, his brother confirmed, as I suspected when I noticed his Wikipedia page said he grew up on Chicago's South Side, the new Pope is a White Sox fan.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1920580787964981273

Presumably, the rest of his sports allegiances lie with the Bears, Bulls and Blackhawks, lol.
 
barbk said:
Mr. BarbK and I agree that Pope Leo is remarkably young. Really young. A week older than Mr. BarbK, and four weeks older than moi. That makes him young, right?

Weird to think that we were all in first grade at the same time. I wonder if his Catholic school had 55 kids in the first grade classroom? Mine did.
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NPR said today all his old schools in the south side of Chicago had been closed, including one of the colleges he studied at, as well as the parish church where he grew up. The neighborhood was predominantly Catholic and after they moved into the suburbs, the parish was eventually closed. It's kind of sad really.
 
The Catholics (including the future Pope) moved out, and Protestants in. It's not that sad, really. It’s a testament to new opportunities.
 
TanithandBenFan said:
Our local New Orleans media is eating this up. And everyone around here is digging into Ancestry.com to see if they’re related to the pope. ?
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And his maternal grandfather was born in Haiti. Truly someone who represents all of the Americas and the Western Hemisphere.

Wiki says he also speaks French (makes sense if his maternal grandparents were Haitian & Louisiana Creole) and Portuguese.

ETA - he's also a soccer fan - Peru needs some heavenly intervention if they hope to qualify for next year's World Cup, lol.

larepublica.pe

Periodista que conoció a papa Robert Prevost revela que es hincha de Alianza: “Tiene inclinación”

Antes de convertirse en el papa León XIV, Robert Prevost vivió durante muchos años en el Perú, donde se enamoró de los colores de uno de los equipos más representativos del país.
larepublica.pe larepublica.pe
 
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Karen-W said:
Wiki says he also speaks French (makes sense if his maternal grandparents were Haitian & Louisiana Creole) and Portuguese.
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His paternal grandparents were from France. Of course, it's also possible that he learned French in other ways and for other reasons, like he did with Italian, Spanish, etc..
 
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