Vatican City, May 9, 2025 — The Catholic Church welcomed a historic new leader today as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected the 267th Bishop of Rome, taking the name Pope Leo XIV. An American by birth and missionary by calling, he becomes the first Augustinian and the second pope from the Americas to ascend to the papacy, following Pope Francis.
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| Pope Francis with Robert Francis, Cardinal Prevost, now Leo XIV (Vatican Media) |
Born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, to a family of French, Italian, and Spanish heritage, Pope Leo XIV brings a unique blend of North American roots and deep Latin American pastoral experience. After earning a degree in mathematics at Villanova University and studying philosophy, he entered the Order of Saint Augustine and took his solemn vows in 1981.
Pope Leo XIV, currently the head of the Catholic Church, is the first Augustinian friar to become pope in modern times—making him the first in 770 years since the last Augustinian pontiff. This milestone has been hailed as a historic affirmation of the Order's spiritual and intellectual contributions to the Church.
Ordained a priest in Rome in 1982, Prevost later earned a doctorate in Canon Law and began a lifelong commitment to missionary service. His two decades in Peru were marked by humble parish ministry, seminary teaching, and judicial work in Trujillo, where he ministered to some of the region’s poorest communities.
His fluency in Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese, as well as his ability to read Latin and German, has allowed him to connect across linguistic and cultural boundaries throughout his ministry.
In 1999, he returned to the U.S. as Provincial Prior of the Augustinians in Chicago, before being elected Prior General of the Order—a role he held for two terms. In 2014, Pope Francis appointed him Apostolic Administrator of Chiclayo, Peru, and later made him Bishop. Known for his episcopal motto, In Illo uno unum (“In the one [Christ], we are one”), he emphasized unity through faith.
His trajectory to the papacy accelerated in 2023 when he was named Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, overseeing the appointment of bishops worldwide. Elevated to cardinal in 2024, he played a central role in both sessions of the Synod on Synodality, signaling his alignment with Pope Francis’s reformist vision.
With a reputation for pastoral humility, doctrinal clarity, and missionary zeal, Pope Leo XIV begins his pontificate at a critical time for the Church. His blend of global experience, Augustinian spirituality, and collaborative leadership is expected to bring continuity and renewed energy to the Catholic world.
— The Summit Express
