Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, Leo XIV, Elected as First American Pope
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago was elected Thursday as the first American pope. Here’s what to know about him and his new papal name, Leo XIV.
The Roman Catholic Church made history on Thursday, choosing Chicago-born missionary Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago as the first American pope.
Prevost, who appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica about an hour after the news broke, announced he had chosen the name Leo XIV. Now the 267th pontiff, he was elected on the fourth ballot.
Dressed in the traditional white papal cassock and ceremonial fisherman’s ring, Prevost’s first words from the balcony were the traditional Catholic greeting, “Peace be with you.” He stressed the need to build bridges, saying people needed “to be a single people,” always in peace.
His appearance followed excitement earlier in the day sparked by the sight of white smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney, the traditional signal that the College of Cardinals had elected a new pontiff. Raucous cheers and applause could be heard from a crowd that seemed to multiply exponentially in St. Peter’s Square.
Prevost will succeed Pope Francis, who died on April 21 after a lengthy battle with a life-threatening case of pneumonia, as the supreme leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics and as the bishop of Rome. Speaking in Italian and Spanish, the 69-year-old echoed his predecessor, saying he wanted a church “that was synodal” – one that sought to be “close to those who suffered.”
The election comes at a critical point for the 2,000-year-old church that has spent decades reckoning with past sex abuse scandals, accounting concerns and dwindling attendance in some parts of the world. Francis, the first Jesuit elected to the role, broke the mold as he widened access to the church for marginalized communities and women.
Here’s what to know about the new pontiff and his election.
Who Is Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost?
Prevost, 69, hails from Chicago and spent much of his career as a missionary and bishop in South America before taking one of the most influential posts in the Vatican. He is an Augustinian, a member of the Order of St. Augustine order that prioritizes communal living and service.
He was ordained at the age of 27 in 1982 and received a doctorate in canon law at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He speaks English, Spanish and Italian.
He served for two decades in the Peruvian city of Chiclayo, where he worked as a missionary, parish priest, teacher and bishop. He then rose through the ranks to lead the international religious order.
He was elevated to cardinal by Francis in 2023 and was a close personal friend to the late pope. Francis appointed him to the Dicastery for Bishops, which oversees the selection and management of new bishops around the world. The role is considered one of the most powerful in the Vatican.
As a close friend of Francis, Prevost is expected to largely follow in his footsteps. But it is unknown whether he will continue the Bergoglian tradition of outreach to LGBTQ+ people. He decried the Western news media and popular culture’s “sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the Gospel” during a 2012 address to bishops. He directly criticized the “homosexual lifestyle” and “alternative families of same-sex partners and their adopted children.”
During his time in Peru, he opposed a government plan to include teachings on gender in schools, saying the “promotion of gender ideology is confusing, because it seeks to create genders that don’t exist.” He has also come under fire for his handling of priests accused of sexual abuse. One woman in Chiclayo accused him of mishandling an investigation into two priests accused of sexual abuse and of not preventing one of them from celebrating Mass.
Why Did He Choose the Name Leo XIV?
Prevost elected to use the name Leo, a rarity among past papal names. The last time the name was used was in 1878 by Pope Leo XIII, who served until his death in 1903. Popes frequently send a signal about their priorities and influences in the names they choose. Leo XIII served in an era of global industrialization and was known for championing the rights of workers and aiming to reconcile the faith with a rapidly modernizing world.
The tradition of selecting a papal name has been around for centuries. In the early days, popes opted to use their baptismal names or other names. It wasn’t until the late 10th century that choosing a formal papal name became a standard practice. Out of 266 popes, 129 have chosen a new name.
Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was the first to use the name in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, a Catholic friar who created the Franciscan order, a group of friars known for their dedication to service.
