Robert Prevost has turn out to be the 267th pope, the primary time in 2,000 years that an American has been appointed to guide the Catholic church.
Chicago-born Prevost has chosen to be referred to as Leo XIV. As Bishop of Chicago, the 69-year-old oversaw the biggest Archdiocese in North America.
Previous to his election, many observers had questioned him as a candidate, resulting from his relative younger age and inexperience. Some speculated that cardinals would additionally want to choose a European, following 12 years of tenure by Pope Francis – an Argentinian.
Prevost, who holds each American and Peruvian citizenship, beforehand served as prefect of the Vatican’s dicastery for bishops, which handles numerous administrative and pastoral obligations of the Holy See, together with the vetting nominations for bishops around the globe.
He additionally served because the Pontifical Fee for Latin America, the place almost 40 per cent of the world’s Catholics reside.
Prevost assumed each these roles in 2023, making him comparatively inexperienced, however he was favored by Pope Francis and was believed to be thought of the principle “Bergoglian” candidate, as an ally of the late head of the Vatican.
Vatican insiders described him because the “darkish horse” candidate who quietly rose to prominence within the days simply earlier than the conclave, having been made a cardinal-bishop in February this yr.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1955, Prevost had a protracted profession in missionary work in South America, working for almost 15 years in Peru till 1998. In 2015, he was appointed the bishop of Chiclayo in northwest Peru.
Rising up, a gentle stream of monks handed by his household house, and the teen reportedly had a optimistic expertise of parish life, serving as an altar boy and attending the parish faculty.
He was despatched to check canon legislation on the Angelicum in Rome and was ordained as a preist within the metropolis in 1982. After finishing his research, he was invited to work within the Territorial Prelature of Chulucanas, in northwestern Peru, which held sturdy connections with the U.S. Augustinians.
In 1999, he was elected provincial prior of the Midwest Augustinians, and two years later, in 2001, Prevost was elected prior common of the worldwide Augustinian order, a publish he held for 2 six-year phrases.
In 2014, he returned to northwestern Peru, after Francis named him apostolic administrator of the Chiclayo diocese.
Prevost was appointed a member of the Dicastery for Bishops in 2020, and later became its head.
He has championed the importance of on the ground work. In a 2023 interview with Vatican News, he said: “One must not give in to the temptation to live isolated, separated in a palace, satisfied with a certain social level or a certain level within the church.
“The authority we have is to serve, to accompany priests, to be pastors and teachers.”
Prevost is also an expert in canon law, a system that functions like a constitution and legal system specifically for the Catholic Church, affording him appeal to the more traditional wings of the Vatican.
However, it remains to be seen how he will respond to the actions of U.S. President Donald Trump, who posted his congratulations on his social media platform Truth Social after the announcement.
“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope. It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country,” Trump wrote. “I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!”
Earlier this year, Provost publicly voiced opposition to remarks by vice president JD Vance, on the theological concept of “ordo amoris.”
“JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others,” he wrote on X.
Provost’s latest post on X was a repost of of an account criticizing the Trump administration’s policy on immigrant deportations.
In 1999, he was elected provincial prior of the Midwest Augustinians. A year into the role, he permitted a priest who sexually abused minors to reside in a Chicago rectory half a block from a Catholic faculty, on the archdiocese’s request.
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