Pope Leo
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became Pope Leo XIV after being elected in the May, 2025 papal conclave. Born in 1955 in Chicago, he is the first American pontiff in the Roman Catholic Church’s history.
Biography
Pope Leo graduated from Villanova University in Pennsylvania, Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and received both a licentiate and doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He spent most of his religious career between Chicago and Peru, where he is a naturalized citizen, working at different archdioceses, serving on missions, and being appointed the apostolic administrator and Bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo.
In 2023, Leo was named by Pope Francis as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, a role that made him responsible for selecting bishops, and which he held until Francis died. He was proclaimed cardinal on Sept 30, 2023.
Leo has been an advocate for issues that were also important to Pope Francis: the environment, the wealth divide, compassion for the poor, the universal church, peace, and the promotion of women (short of making them priests). However, since his election as the new pope, some have questioned Pope Leo’s past negative remarks on the LGBTQ+ community and his alleged inaction against child sexual abuse in the church.
