The New Pope, Leo XIV, Is 69 and From Chicago
Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost has been elected the 267th Bishop of Rome. He is from the United States and is 69 years old.
The new pope is of French, Italian, and Spanish descent. He has two brothers, according to Vatican News.
Pope Leo XIV was born in Chicago and served for two decades in Peru, according to The New York Times. In the words of the outlet, "Until the death of Francis, he held one of the most influential Vatican posts, running the office that selects and manages bishops globally."
Pope XIV was ordained at age 27 and received his doctorate in canon law at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He earned his degree in Mathematics in 1977 from Villanova University.
Per Vatican News, he is the second pope from America— the first was Jorge Mario Bergoglio.
Pope Leo XIV greets the world for the first time to grant his Urbi et Orbi blessing. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the 267th Successor of Peter by the 133 Cardinal electors on Thursday, May 8. pic.twitter.com/Xzusx6gLoe
— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) May 8, 2025
In January 2023, he was asked to serve as the Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and the President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. In September of that year, he was assigned the Diaconate of Saint Monica. In February of 2025, he was promoted to the Order of Bishops.
As for where he stands on certain sociopolitical discussions, that remains to be seen. According to The New York Times, "It is unclear whether he will be as open to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Catholics as Francis was. Although he has not said much recently, in a 2012 address to bishops, he lamented that Western news media and popular culture fostered 'sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the Gospel.' He cited the 'homosexual lifestyle' and 'alternative families comprised of same-sex partners and their adopted children.'"
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