Some (very) initial thoughts on Pope Leo XIV elected May 8, 2025

In many ways, the results of every conclave is a surprise. When it was announced Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was to be Pope Leo XIV, and he was an American, it was indeed a shock. But in many ways, he is a world citizen, an American from Chicago, and a naturalized Peruvian.

Some (very) initial thoughts on Pope Leo XIV elected May 8, 2025

Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum;
habemus Papam:

Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum,
Dominum Robertum Franciscum
Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Prevost
qui sibi nomen imposuit LEONEM XIV

With these words, the life of Pope Leo XIV changed dramatically. In fact, it will never be the same. These are some very, very initial thoughts. And a very important caveat. Who he has been may not be who he is. The pope does, in my view, receive special graces, so it is not always easy to see how he will lead the Church.

Just who is Pope Leo XIV?

Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost, was born in Chicago on September 14, 2025. His father, Louis Marius Prevost, was of French and Italian descent, and his mother, Mildred Martinez, was of Spanish descent. While initially it was reported he was a Cubs fan, his family confirmed he was a White Sox fan, though his parents split between the Cubs and the White Sox. He grew up in Dolton, Illinois. He grew up in St. Mary of the Assumption Parish where he also attended grade school.

After his time in elementary school, after eighth grade he entered Saint Augustine Seminary High School in Holland, Michigan. The high school seminary was run by the Augustinians in Holland, Michigan. After graduating in 1973, he attended Villanova, where he majored in Math and studied philosophy.

After graduating from Villanova in 1977, on September 1 he entered the novitiate for the Augustinians, making solemn profession on August 29, 1981. Ordained a priest of the Order of Saint Augustine (The Augustinians) on June 19, 1982, Pope Leo was sent to study Canon Law, earning a doctoral degree from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum).

As he was writing his dissertation, he was sent to Peru where he was to spend much of his life as an Augustinian. According the Vatican News, “Over the course of eleven years, he served as prior of the community (1988–1992), formation director (1988–1998), and instructor for professed members (1992–1998), and in the Archdiocese of Trujillo as judicial vicar (1989–1998) and professor of Canon Law, Patristics, and Moral Theology at the Major Seminary “San Carlos y San Marcelo.” At the same time, he was also entrusted with the pastoral care of Our Lady Mother of the Church, later established as the parish of Saint Rita (1988–1999), in a poor suburb of the city, and was parish administrator of Our Lady of Monserrat from 1992 to 1999.”

In 1999 he was elected as Provincial Prior of the Augustinian Province of Mother of Good Counsel in Chicago. In 2001, he was elected as Prior General, a post he held until 2013. Returning to Chicago, in 2014 he was named apostolic administrator of the diocese of Chiclayo, becoming bishop there in 2015. His motto was taken from Saint Augustine, In Illo uno unum (although we Christians are many, in the one Christ we are one).

Pope Francis tapped him for leadership positions in the Church, naming him to the Congregation for Clergy (2019) and the Congregation of Bishops (2020). He also held various leadership positions in Peru and Latin America.

He was appointed Prefect for the Dicastery of Bishops. He was named President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. In 2024, Pope Francis named him a cardinal.

According to Vatican News, “Pope Francis appointed him as a member of the Dicasteries for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches), for the Doctrine of the Faith, for the Eastern Churches, for the Clergy, for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, for Culture and Education, for Legislative Texts, and of the Pontifical Commission for the Vatican City State.”

Given his time in Rome, it is likely that many of the cardinals knew him, especially given the breadth of the appointments he received. He lived in Rome since 2023, and participated in apostolic trips with Pope Francis.

Elected Pope Leo XIV on May 8, 2025, La Republicca called him the least American of the American cardinals, a quality that may have made the cardinals more comfortable in voting for him. While some news outlets considered him a possible “contender” to be pope, his election was still somewhat of a surprise.

Who was Leo XIII?

Sometimes it can be asked, “What’s in a name?” and when it comes to being elected pope the choice of his name as pope can provide an initial clue as to his pontificate. The Vatican confirmed that the choice of Leo was a direct connection to the pontificate of Pope Leo XIII.

Born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci, Pope Leo XIII became pope on February 20, 1878. Much of his life saw the decline of the Church’s political power, and in his posts in the Church he witnessed great suffering of the poor.

Throughout his time as a bishop Pope Leo XIII was attentive to the poor, establishing many charitable institutions, including homeless shelters, soup kitchens and a bank of the poor, offering low-interest loans.

When he was made a cardinal, he donated the money that would have been spent on his celebrations of becoming a cardinal to the poor. He was attentive to the needs of the poor, and in the face of the challenges of the Church of his day was a voice that encouraged a more outward looking Church.

In the years following the First Vatican Council, Pope Leo XIII called the Church the mother of material civilization given its support of workers and their rights, opposing the excesses of work during the Industrial Revolution, and its establishment of numerous charitable organizations.

When he was elected pope in 1878, it was thought due to his age and his health his time as pope would be short. Yet he reigned for 25 years as pope. His focus was on seeking to reestablish the connection between faith and science. He reopened the Vatican Observatory and made the Vatican Archives available to serious scholars.

In his encyclical Aeterni Patris he required the study of Saint Thomas Aquinas in seminaries and Catholic universities. He made Thomistic thought the standard for Church theology and philosophy. Shortly after his election he created the Leonine edition of the Summa Theologica.

In his desire to see the Church engage with the world, he had great diplomatic skills that caused the Church to return to normalcy after the challenges of the struggle between the Church and countries (especially Italy) about political power.

But his greatest achievement was the birth of what today is considered the Church’s social teaching. His well known encyclical Rerum Novarum articulated the rights of workers, and placed the Church on the side of the poor. By addressing social inequality, Pope Leo XIII created the foundation of what would come to be known as Catholic Social Teaching.

It was also in this document that the principle of subsidiarity was first articulated, which advocated that solutions to problems should be solved at the lowest or most local level. Moreover, he stated that both capitalism and communism were flawed.

In short, Pope Leo XIII was a reform pope. By embracing a greater dialogue of the Church with modern society, and a focus on the social inequality of his day, his teaching on those who suffered because of this inequality would be expanded by successive popes.

What might we expect from Leo XIV?

In his choice of the name Leo, his long work and identification as a missionary, it is likely that like Pope Francis, he will also focus on the needs of those on the margins. Much of his work in Peru focused on developing ways to assist the poor.

Pope Leo XIV also seems aware of the challenges of the modern world. He began with a desire for peace. “Peace be with you!” were his first words from the balcony. In a world divided by conflict, violence and division, there was an appeal for the need for unity.

“God loves us, God loves you all, and evil will not prevail! We are all in God’s hands. Therefore, without fear, united hand in hand with God and each other let us go forward. We are disciples of Christ. Christ goes before us. The world needs His light. Humanity needs Him as the bridge to be reached by God and His love. Help us too, then each other to build bridges, with dialogue, with encounter, uniting us all to be one people always at peace. Thank you to Pope Francis!”

In his first words as Pope, Leo XIV stated, “To all of you, brothers and sisters from Rome, from Italy, from all over the world, we want to be a synodal Church, a Church that walks, a Church that always seeks peace, that always seeks charity, that always seeks to be close especially to those who suffer.”

Like Pope Leo XIII, it seems Pope Leo XIV will seek to engage with the world. He is known as a great listener, he emphasized the need for the Church to see itself as a missionary Church. “We must seek together how to be a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges, dialogue, always open to receive like this square with open arms. Everyone, everyone who needs our charity, our presence, dialogue and love.”

At the same time each pope leaves their own mark on the Church. Pope Leo XIV is more reserved than Pope Francis, and might move back to the papal apartments. He returned to the wearing the mozetta, or red cape that popes often wore.

And it seems he will seek to be a bridge builder within the Church too. It will be interesting to watch how an American pope might address the American Church. There was sometimes vocal opposition to Pope Francis, and Pope Leo XIV might attempt a need to bring about more unity.

The pope will say Mass at 11am (Rome Time; 5 am Eastern Time) with the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel. On Sunday, at 12 noon (Rome Time; 6am Eastern Time) Pope Leo will lead the Regina Coeli, and on Monday at 10 am (Rome Time; 4am Eastern) he will meet with media officials.

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