The 69-year-old from Chicago stepped into his role as the 267th pope on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica on Thursday evening, addressing thousands of cheering Catholics with the words: “Peace be with you all.”
Here’s a look at Pope Leo before his papacy:
Courtesy of the Midwest Augustinian Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel
“He’s not a showboat kind of person.” Friends describe Pope Leo as serious, focused and dependable
Father Mark Francis — a friend who attended the same seminary as Pope Leo XIV in the 1970s — said the pontiff’s roots in the Midwest played a large role in shaping him as a religious leader.
Francis, who’s now Provincial of the Viatorians in the US, describes Pope Leo as serious, focused, and dependable, with a good sense of humor.
Francis, who grew up in the Chicago area as well, characterized the Chicago church as “forward-looking,” with a strong desire for women to be more involved in the church. “I think that is a hallmark of my ministry, and I also believe of Pope Leo’s ministry as well: a respect for women and a respect for their voice.”
Rev. John Lydon and the new pope were undergrads together at Villanova then crossed paths again in Peru.
Peggy Wurtz, who grew up in Dolton, Illinois, and went to Catholic school with Pope Leo, said his family was always pious. “He was super smart and super quiet. There isn’t a bad thing you can say about him. He is pure, pure, this guy was destined to be pope,” she said in a phone interview.
Pope Leo XIV “will be a second Pope Francis,” his brother says
John Prevost said he thinks his brother, Pope Leo XIV, “will be a second Pope Francis.”
“I think he’ll follow right in his footsteps working for the underprivileged,” Prevost told CNN affiliate WBBM.
He said his brother will make a good pope because Pope Leo has “a deep feeling for the disenfranchised, for the poor, for those who were not listened to.”
He said that he thinks his brother will be very active around the world and will “speak his mind.”
Here are 5 things you should know about Pope Leo
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost – now known as Pope Leo XIV — is the first pope from the United States.
The 69-year-old from Chicago is known as a leader with global experience. He spent much of his career as a missionary in South America and most recently led a powerful Vatican office for bishop appointments.
His election represents continuity with the papacy of the late Pope Francis, and he is expected to continue Francis’ reforms of the church as well as his focus on poverty and marginalized people.
Here’s what else you should know about the new American pontiff:
- He was the “least American” of the American cardinals: Prevost was born in Chicago. But inside the Vatican, where he eventually lived and worked, he was considered the “least American” of the US cardinals.
- He was well regarded by Pope Francis: The late pontiff “respected him and thought of him very highly,” according to CNN’s Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb. “Clearly Pope Francis saw in him something – he saw him as a capable leader.”
- He’s a member of the Augustinian order: Leo is a member of the Augustinian religious order, which is spread across the world. He led the order for more than a decade as its prior general.
- He has strong leadership experience: Francis appointed Prevost to be the prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, which is in charge of assessing bishop candidates and making recommendations for new appointments. He also served as the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
- He has a missionary focus: “I still consider myself a missionary. My vocation, like that of every Christian, is to be a missionary, to proclaim the Gospel wherever one is,” Prevost said in an interview with Vatican News shortly after he moved into his leadership role in Rome.
