PROFILE: Leo XIV, the altar boy who became first American pope

PROFILE: Leo XIV, the altar boy who became first American pope

 “Habemus Papam!” — We have a pope. With those timeless Latin words,
senior Cardinal Dominique Mamberti stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter’s
Basilica, greeting the sea of faithful who had filled the square below despite
the blazing Roman sun.

But it was not the swift
conclusion of the conclave that etched this moment into history — it was the
identity of the man chosen to succeed Pope Francis: Cardinal Robert Prevost,
the first American pope in the nearly 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church.

Prevost was not widely considered
a frontrunner for the papacy before the 2025 conclave, especially compared to
other prominent candidates like Italy’s Pietro Parolin, the Philippines’ Luis
Tagle, or Congo’s Fridolin Besungu, who were seen as leading contenders and featured
heavily on betting platforms and Vatican analyst discussions.

Historically, cardinals have
preferred older European successors to the papacy, mostly owing to their
conservative nature.

 

So, who is Prevost, and how did
the “dark horse” candidate quietly rise to become leader of the world’s 1.4
billion Catholics?

 

THE “LATIN” AMERICAN PRIEST’S
BACKGROUND

Prevost will be the 267th
occupant of the throne of St Peter and the first from the United States.

However, the 69-year-old is often
described as a Latin American because of the many years he spent as a
missionary in Peru before becoming an archbishop there.

Born in Chicago in 1955 to
parents of Ecuadorian and French descent, Prevost served as an altar boy and
was ordained as a priest in 1982.

After his ordination as a priest
in 1982, Prevost joined the Augustinian mission in Peru in 1985
and served as chancellor of the Territorial Prélature of Chulucanas from 1985
to 1986.

He was in the United States as pastor
for vocations and director of missions for the Augustinian Province of Chicago
between 1987 and 1988.

He returned to Peru, where he
spent the next 10 years heading the Augustinian seminary in Trujillo and
teaching canon law in the diocesan seminary and was also prefect of studies.

Prevost also served in other
capacities there, including as a parish pastor, diocesan official, director of
formation, seminary teacher, and judicial vicar.

In 1999, he returned to Chicago
and was elected provincial prior of the “Mother of Good Counsel” province in
the archdiocese. Two and a half years later, he was elected prior general of
the Augustinians and served two terms until 2013.

In 2014, he returned to Peru when
Pope Francis appointed him apostolic administrator of the diocese of Chiclayo.
He was elevated to bishop the next year and went on to serve as vice-president
and member of the permanent council of the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference from
2018 to 2023.

At that time, Prevost was said to
have overseen the role Peru’s bishops played in ensuring institutional
stability during the successive political crises that led to the overthrow of
successive presidents in the South American country.

 

PREVOST, THE MATHEMATICIAN
FLUENT IN SPANISH AND ITALIAN

In his first speech after his
election as the new pope, Prevost addressed the crowd in English, Spanish, and
Italian.

The American earned his first
bachelor of science in mathematics from Villanova University in 1977. The
following years would see him majoring in theological fields.

 

In 1982, he clinched a master of
divinity from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. In 1984, he got a
licentiate in canon law from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas
(Angelicum) in Rome, and in 1987, he added a doctorate in canon law from the
same university.

 

VATICAN LEADERSHIP AND VIEWS

Pope Francis appointed Prevost
prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in January 2023, a powerful position
responsible for selecting bishops.

He held the position until
Francis died on April 21. Francis was also the one who elevated Prevost to the
rank of cardinal in September 2023.

Prevost is also a member of seven
Vatican dicasteries as well as the Commission for the Governance of the Vatican
City State, indicating how much Francis trusted the cardinal and valued his
administrative abilities.

The American is known not for how
much he speaks but for how deeply he listens.

On key topics, the new pope says
little, but some of his positions are known.

For example, he once stated that “clericalising women” would not
solve the Church’s problems and might even create new ones but was reportedly
very close to Francis’ vision regarding the environment, outreach to the poor
and migrants, and meeting people “where they are”.

He also supported Pope Francis’
change in pastoral practice to allow divorced and civilly remarried Catholics
to receive Holy Communion but appeared less favourable to currying favour with
the LGBTQ lobby than Francis.

Prevost has also found himself
entangled in controversies regarding clergy sexual abuse cases, although he has
been defended in both instances.

Although Prevost was not the
accused in both cases, he came under fire for how he handled the cases which
involved other priests accused of sexually abusing minors. However, Prevost’s
supporters claimed that the cases were inaccurately and unfairly reported in
the media.

Prevost has now taken the name Pope Leo XIV, in
honour of Pope Leo XIII, who was elected pontiff in 1878.

Leo XIII was known for his
intellectualism and outlined the rights of workers to a fair wage, safe working
conditions, and the formation of trade unions.

 

Source: PROFILE: Leo XIV, the altar boy who became first American pope

 - NigerianEye
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