2025: Meet the New Pope – Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost from Chicago Becomes the First American Leader of the Catholic Church

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost from the United States has been chosen as the 267th pope. He made his appearance on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, taking on the role of the leader for 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide.

He’ll be known as Pope Leo XIV.

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“He was crying. You could see his tears. I was in the front row up front, and you could see him just getting emotional,” said Kari Cote. “The holy spirit does amazing things, and I think that’s what we saw today. The holy spirit in action.”

Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich, who was part of the conclave, was also prominently featured in this moment for American Catholics.

Prevost, 69, from Chicago, Illinois, is the first-ever pope from the United States.

Pope Leo XIV was born on Chicago’s South Side and reportedly roots for both the Chicago Cubs and White Sox.

He grew up in south suburban Dolton.

Holy Name Cathedral was in the middle of mass when the new pope was announced.

A parishioner broke the news to Father Gregory Sakowicz during communion on Thursday.

“I said, ‘thank you, for sharing,'” Sakowicz said. “When he was named, the moment I looked outside, here in Chicago, the sun came out.”

The black mourning bunting that was put up after Pope Francis’ death was removed Thursday, and replaced with white and gold bunting.

Students at Chicago’s Our Lady of Mount Carmel Academy reacted to the election of Pope Leo XIV.

The school held a mock conclave to teach students what happens behind the doors at the Sistine Chapel.

Loyola student Caleb Ham expressed his hopes for the new pope, “Definitely, I want to see him focus more on, just like Pope Francis said, the youth, I really want to see because there’s no church if you don’t focus on the youth.”

‘An exceptional leader’

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. He is expected to build on Pope Francis’ reforms.

He worked for a decade in Trujillo, Peru, and was later appointed bishop of Chiclayo, another Peruvian city, where he served from 2014 to 2023.

Prevost is a member of the Augustinian religious order – which he also led for more than a decade as their prior general, which has given him leadership experience of leading an order spread across the world.

Considered a highly capable and accomplished leader, Prevost most recently led the powerful Vatican office for new bishop appointments, the Dicastery for Bishops, assessing candidates and making recommendations to the late pope. He also served as the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

While it is often said cardinal electors would always shy away from choosing a pope from the US, due to America’s outsized global political influence, Prevost’s long experience in Peru may have mitigated those fears among the electors.

“He’s somebody that, even though he’s from the West, would be very attentive to the needs of a global church,” said Elise Allen, CNN’s Vatican analyst. “You’re talking about somebody who spent over half of his ecclesial career abroad as a missionary in Peru.”

Allen added that he is seen as an apt leader in Vatican circles because “he’s able to accomplish things without necessarily being authoritarian about the way he did things.”

“Prevost is somebody who is seen as an exceptional leader. From very young, he was appointed to leadership roles,” Allen said. “He’s seen as somebody who is calm and balanced, who is even-handed, and who is very clear on what he thinks needs to be done… but he’s not overly forceful in trying to make that happen.”

Prevost earned his bachelor’s in mathematics from Villanova University in Pennsylvania and went on receive his diploma in theology from the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago.

Gathering in a classroom, the staff and students at the Catholic Theological Union watched along with the entire world waiting for the announcement Thursday.

When Prevost was announced, President Sister Barbara Reed had to listen to his name twice.

She couldn’t believe it.

The pride that one of their own graduates is now pope will take some time to sink in.

Reed was invited to the Vatican when Pope Leo XIV was elected cardinal.

Reed says she was hoping the next pope would continue with the same ideology and direction of Pope Francis.

She said Pope Leo XIV will do exactly that.

He was later sent to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University and was ordained as a priest in June 1982. Later in his career, he taught canon law in the seminary in Trujillo, Peru.

In October 2013, he returned to his Augustinian Province in Chicago, Vatican officials said.

On Jan. 30, 2023, Pope Francis promoted Prevost to archbishop.

He was made a cardinal in January 2024.

In an interview with Vatican News shortly after he became the leader of the Dicastery for Bishops, Prevost said: “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.”

Asked about the contributions of three women who were made members of the Dicastery for Bishops, Prevost told Vatican News: “I think their appointment is more than just a gesture on the part of the Pope to say that there are now women here, too. There is a real, genuine, and meaningful participation that they offer at our meetings when we discuss the dossiers of candidates.”

He also addressed the responsibility of combating clerical abuse, saying: “There are places where good work has already been done for years and the rules are being put into practice. At the same time, I believe that there is still much to learn.”

Cardinals took two days to select a new pontiff, matching the timeline from the previous two gatherings and suggesting that Prevost quickly impressed his peers during the secretive process.

Francis and Benedict XVI were both revealed in the evening of the conclave’s second day, while John Paul II, the longest-reigning pope of modern times, was selected on the third day in 1978.

Local Reaction Pours In

Former President Barack Obama said, “Michelle and I send our congratulations to a fellow Chicagoan, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV. This is a historic day for the United States, and we will pray for him as he begins the sacred work of leading the Catholic Church and setting an example for so many, regardless of faith.”

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker reacted to the new pope on social media:

“A historic moment as we witness the first American leading the Catholic Church.”

“Hailing from Chicago, Pope Leo XIV ushers in a new chapter that I join those in our state welcoming in at a time when we need compassion, unity, and peace.”

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said, “The Pope is from Chicago. This is one of the biggest moments in the modern history of our city. Pope Leo XIV will be a champion for workers all over the world. It’s only right that he was born and educated in the most pro-worker city in America. The Catholic Church has a strong tradition of standing up for the poor and the vulnerable, and I know that Pope Leo XIV will continue that tradition. This is a tremendous moment for our Catholic community and for all Chicagoans. God bless Chicago. God bless Pope Leo XIV.”

Even the Chicago Cubs put out a statement, saying, “Not only would we welcome Pope Leo XIV to Wrigley Field, he could sing Take Me Out to the Ballgame or, since three of his predecessors visited Yankee Stadium, including Pope Paul VI who delivered the 1965 “Sermon on the Mound,” we would invite the Pontiff to do the same at the Friendly Confines.”

CNN contributed to this report.