Who’s Robert Prevost, the brand new Pope Leo XIV and first American Pope?

Even earlier than his identify was introduced from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, the crowds under had been chanting “Viva il Papa” – Lengthy reside the Pope.

Robert Prevost, 69, would be the 267th occupant of the throne of St Peter and he might be referred to as Leo XIV.

He’s the primary American to fill the position of Pope, though he’s thought of as a lot a cardinal from Latin America due to the numerous years he spent as a missionary in Peru, earlier than changing into a bishop there.

Born in Chicago in 1955 to folks of Spanish and Franco-Italian descent, Prevost served as an altar boy and was ordained as a priest in 1982. Though he moved to Peru three years later, he returned often to the US to function a pastor and a previous in his dwelling metropolis.

He has Peruvian nationality and is fondly remembered as a determine who labored with marginalised communities and helped construct bridges.

He spent 10 years as an area parish pastor and as a trainer at a seminary in Trujillo in northwestern Peru.

In his first phrases as Pope, Leo XIV spoke fondly of his predecessor Francis.

“We nonetheless hear in our ears the weak however all the time brave voice of Pope Francis who blessed us,” he mentioned.

“United and hand in hand with God, allow us to advance collectively,” he informed cheering crowds.

He additionally spoke of his position within the Augustinian Order. He was 30 when he moved to Peru as a part of an Augustinian mission.

Francis made him Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru a 12 months after changing into Pope.

He’s well-known to cardinals due to his high-profile position as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Latin America which has the essential process of choosing and supervising bishops.

He turned archbishop on the similar time in January 2023 and inside a couple of months Francis made him a cardinal.

As 80% of the cardinals who took half within the conclave had been appointed by Francis, it’s not all that stunning that somebody like Prevost was elected, even when he was solely lately appointed.

He might be seen as a determine who favoured the continuity of Francis’ reforms within the Catholic Church.

Prevost is believed to have shared Francis’ views on migrants, the poor and the setting.

A former roommate of his, Reverend John Lydon, described Prevost to the BBC as “outgoing”, “right down to earth” and “very involved with the poor”.

On his private background, Prevost informed Italian community RAI earlier than the conclave that he grew up in a household of immigrants.

“I used to be born in the US…However my grandparents had been all immigrants, French, Spanish…I used to be raised in a really Catholic household, each of my mother and father had been very engaged within the parish,” he mentioned.

Though Prevost is an American, and might be totally conscious of the divisions throughout the Catholic Church, his Latin American background additionally represents continuity after a Pope who got here from Argentina.

The Vatican described him because the second pope from the Americas, after Pope Francis, in addition to the the primary Augustinian pope.

Throughout his time in Peru he has not escaped the sexual abuse scandals which have clouded the Church, nevertheless his diocese fervently denied he had been concerned in any tried cover-up.

Earlier than the conclave, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni mentioned that in gatherings of the School of Cardinals within the days earlier than the conclave they emphasised the necessity for a pope with “a prophetic spirit able to main a Church that doesn’t shut in on itself however is aware of methods to exit and produce gentle to a world marked by despair”.

In selecting the identify Leo, Prevost has signified a dedication to dynamic social points, in response to consultants.

The primary pope to make use of the identify Leo, whose papacy resulted in 461, met Attila the Hun and persuaded him to not assault Rome. The final Pope Leo led the Church from 1878 to 1903 and wrote an influential treatise on employee rights.

Former Archbishop of Boston Seán Patrick O’Malley wrote on his weblog that the brand new pontiff “has chosen a reputation extensively related to the social justice legacy of Pope Leo XIII, who was pontiff at a time of epic upheaval on this planet, the time of the commercial revolution, the start of Marxism, and widespread immigration”.

His LGBT views are unclear, however some teams, together with the conservative School of Cardinals, imagine he could also be much less welcoming to these teams than Pope Francis.

He has proven assist for a papal declaration from Francis which allows blessings for same-sex {couples} and others in “irregular conditions”, though he added that the declaration reveals the necessity for bishops to interpret directives given native contexts and cultures.

Talking final 12 months about local weather change, Prevost mentioned that it was time to maneuver “from phrases to motion”.

“Dominion over nature” mustn’t develop into “tyrannical,” he mentioned. He referred to as on mankind to construct a “relationship of reciprocity” with the setting.

He additionally spoke concerning the Vatican’s dedication to the setting, noting the set up of photo voltaic panels in Rome and the adoption of electrical autos.

He has supported Pope Francis’ resolution to permit girls to affix the Dicastery for Bishops for the primary time, giving them enter on these appointments.

“On a number of events now we have seen that their perspective is an enrichment,” he informed Vatican Information in 2023.

In 2024, he informed the Catholic Information Service that their presence “contributes considerably to the method of discernment in on the lookout for who we hope are the most effective candidates to serve the Church in episcopal ministry”.