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Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV
Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV

Yahoo

time12-05-2025

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV

The journey of Bob Prevost of the South Side of Chicago to Pope Leo XIV of the Holy See could not have been foreseen when the new pope was a Chicago kid in the 1960s or when he was a math major at Villanova in the 1970s. Every pope since 1523 — 45 men sitting as successors to St. Peter as bishop of Rome — had been Italians. But the Church was changing. A year out of college, Prevost took his first vows in September 1978, a month before Karol Wojtyła, a Pole, was elected Pope John Paul II. He was followed by Joseph Ratzinger, a German, who was elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005. And a dozen years ago, Argentine Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected by the assembled cardinals as Pope Francis. Now there is an American pope, and one who uses Twitter. His online rebuke of President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance for their harsh and cruel immigration policies aligns with the humane and compassionate approach of Francis and church teachings. The newly named Leo will be a welcome voice, with a Midwestern accent, against the unchristian attitude of the present administration towards people fleeing oppression and persecution. And unlike Trump and Vance, Leo understands the importance and dire threat of climate change, again following Francis. Having served as a priest and bishop in Peru for decades, Leo knows deeply of the struggles of the developing world, allowing him to be a bridge between rich and poor nations. Even the name the new pontiff has selected for himself says something. The last Leo, Leo XIII, who served in the Vatican from 1878 until 1903, was the first pope in more than 1,000 years to not rule the Papal States as a king. But more significantly, it was Leo XIII who promulgated the first modern encyclical on social justice and on workers' rights. The 1891 Rerum novarum, with the English title 'Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor,' mapped out the need for fairness in working hours and wages and the rights of labor. More than a century later, that need continues today. Over the weekend, Trump put an image on his Truth Social of him being Pope Donald I, a crude comparison that Cardinal Dolan didn't appreciate. While Trump did get the citizenship of the new pontiff correct, Leo's views on how we should treat other humans is so far at odds with the shameful attitude of the president. Stalin joked at the Potsdam Conference about how many divisions does the pope have. The Soviet dictator, the Man of Steel, was the type of tyrant that Trump chillingly admires. Not since the end of the Papal States in 1870 has the pope commanded troops, but he does lead men (and women). The new pope Leo spoke from the balcony in St. Peter's Square only in Italian and Spanish yesterday, which is fair as his new job is being bishop of Rome and he has had decades of pastoral duties in Peru, where he was granted citizenship. But Bob Prevost is still an American and a lifelong White Sox fan, befitting his South Side roots. And soon Americans will hear him in his native English. ___

Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV
Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV

Yahoo

time12-05-2025

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Editorial: An American pope for the world — Chicago's Bob Prevost is Pope Leo XIV

The journey of Bob Prevost of the South Side of Chicago to Pope Leo XIV of the Holy See could not have been foreseen when the new pope was a Chicago kid in the 1960s or when he was a math major at Villanova in the 1970s. Every pope since 1523 — 45 men sitting as successors to St. Peter as bishop of Rome — had been Italians. But the Church was changing. A year out of college, Prevost took his first vows in September 1978, a month before Karol Wojtyła, a Pole, was elected Pope John Paul II. He was followed by Joseph Ratzinger, a German, who was elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005. And a dozen years ago, Argentine Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected by the assembled cardinals as Pope Francis. Now there is an American pope, and one who uses Twitter. His online rebuke of President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance for their harsh and cruel immigration policies aligns with the humane and compassionate approach of Francis and church teachings. The newly named Leo will be a welcome voice, with a Midwestern accent, against the unchristian attitude of the present administration towards people fleeing oppression and persecution. And unlike Trump and Vance, Leo understands the importance and dire threat of climate change, again following Francis. Having served as a priest and bishop in Peru for decades, Leo knows deeply of the struggles of the developing world, allowing him to be a bridge between rich and poor nations. Even the name the new pontiff has selected for himself says something. The last Leo, Leo XIII, who served in the Vatican from 1878 until 1903, was the first pope in more than 1,000 years to not rule the Papal States as a king. But more significantly, it was Leo XIII who promulgated the first modern encyclical on social justice and on workers' rights. The 1891 Rerum novarum, with the English title 'Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor,' mapped out the need for fairness in working hours and wages and the rights of labor. More than a century later, that need continues today. Over the weekend, Trump put an image on his Truth Social of him being Pope Donald I, a crude comparison that Cardinal Dolan didn't appreciate. While Trump did get the citizenship of the new pontiff correct, Leo's views on how we should treat other humans is so far at odds with the shameful attitude of the president. Stalin joked at the Potsdam Conference about how many divisions does the pope have. The Soviet dictator, the Man of Steel, was the type of tyrant that Trump chillingly admires. Not since the end of the Papal States in 1870 has the pope commanded troops, but he does lead men (and women). The new pope Leo spoke from the balcony in St. Peter's Square only in Italian and Spanish yesterday, which is fair as his new job is being bishop of Rome and he has had decades of pastoral duties in Peru, where he was granted citizenship. But Bob Prevost is still an American and a lifelong White Sox fan, befitting his South Side roots. And soon Americans will hear him in his native English. ___

What Pope Leo XIV means for the U.S. Catholic church and Trump
What Pope Leo XIV means for the U.S. Catholic church and Trump

Washington Post

time09-05-2025

  • Politics
  • Washington Post

What Pope Leo XIV means for the U.S. Catholic church and Trump

ROME — The new Chicago-raised Pope Leo XIV faces an immediate challenge in his native country: taming the brawling U.S. tribe of Catholics, riven by political divisions that have thwarted the will of his predecessors. Because Pope Leo — earlier known as Bob Prevost from the South Side — is an American better versed than past church leaders in the culture of his home country, some church-watchers and experts say, he may be able to navigate the U.S. Church in a way the Argentine Pope Francis could not. However, they said, it will still be a struggle to pry some American church members away from the now-deeply entrenched American habit of seeing faith through a tribal, political lens.

Pope's pal says if he had to pick a classmate to become pope, he would have guessed "Bob" Prevost
Pope's pal says if he had to pick a classmate to become pope, he would have guessed "Bob" Prevost

CBS News

time09-05-2025

  • Entertainment
  • CBS News

Pope's pal says if he had to pick a classmate to become pope, he would have guessed "Bob" Prevost

Pope's pal says if he had to pick classmate for pope, he would have guessed 'Bob' Prevost Pope's pal says if he had to pick classmate for pope, he would have guessed 'Bob' Prevost Pope's pal says if he had to pick classmate for pope, he would have guessed 'Bob' Prevost One of Pope Leo XIV's longtime friends said that if he had to guess which person in his class would have grown up to become the pontiff, the man he knew as "Bob" Prevost would have been his number one pick. "This is the pope right here. On one knee and, for what it's worth, that's me directly behind him," said Jim Priestly, showing off a photo from their high school graduation as the St. Augustine Prep Seminary class of 1973. The boarding school was located in Michigan, and is now closed. Prevost and Priestly lived, grew and studied together. "A dormitory with—we didn't' have private rooms, but kind of like an army barracks kind of a thing, with beds next to each other," he said. Looking through their freshman yearbook grants some insight into the 14-year-old pope-to-be. He performed in school plays, and was a studio, smart, caring friend. "Bob was a very good student, very obedient, didn't fool around, wasn't the class clown," Priestly said. "He was a very nice guy everyone got along with him. He was well-organized." The two moved on to Villanova University together, sharing a dorm once again. The new pope, Priestly said, was one of the only students to have a car at the time. "He did like to drive," he recalled. "And when I saw him last summer, he drove from New Lenox to Homewood. I remember asking him, 'Oh, how'd you get here?' He said, 'I drove.' And I'm sure he'll mis driving, because I don't think they let the pope drive a car." We asked if the new pontiff preferred deep dish or tavern style pizza, at least in his high school and college years. "He would be very diplomatic in discussing it if you were to ask him," he said. "He would say probably that he likes both of them. And in the Cubs-Sox thing, he would say, 'Well I'm a Sox fan but I like the Cubs too.' Because he's a bridge builder." Priestly said beyond the memories from his childhood, there's just so much pride knowing that the pope comes from Chicago's south suburbs.

Pope Leo XIV in Ireland: Unassuming and personable, he answered emails on the friary stairs
Pope Leo XIV in Ireland: Unassuming and personable, he answered emails on the friary stairs

Irish Times

time09-05-2025

  • Politics
  • Irish Times

Pope Leo XIV in Ireland: Unassuming and personable, he answered emails on the friary stairs

On Thursday evening, every Augustinian friary across the country erupted in cheers. Their former prior general, but more importantly, their brother – known to them as Bob Prevost – had been elected pope. Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV , visited all the Irish Augustinian friaries about every four years during his tenure as their international leader from 2001 to 2013. He is seen as unassuming, kind, personable, intelligent, but unafraid to assert authority when needed. The wifi was terrible when he visited the Ballyboden Augustinians in Dublin . Discovering that the best reception was on the stairs, the prior general of a religious order found in some 47 countries camped there for the afternoon to answer emails. When offered a chair, he courteously replied that he was fine on the stairs. But if there was joy in the friaries in Dublin, Dungarvan, Cork, Drogheda, Fethard, Galway, New Ross and Limerick, I was assured that there would not be a chicken left alive in Chiclayo, Peru , as the locals celebrated their former bishop. READ MORE On the understanding that I would not name him in The Irish Times, one Augustinian suggested that the speculation about whether Pope Leo XIV was a liberal could be answered by one question. When did you last meet a liberal canon lawyer who studied in the Angelicum, the Dominican College in Rome? The Church was never going to elect Che Guevara as Pope. According to this Augustinian, the key to the former Bob Prevost is not a somewhat meaningless liberal-conservative frame, but understanding the distinctive role played by South American bishops, characterised by closeness to their people, service and justice. Technically the first North American pope, he is better understood as the second South American pope. Pope Leo XIV's heart is not in the Chicago of his birth, but Peru. He broke with tradition not to speak in English, but Spanish. The friars have been WhatsApping a photo of him on ponyback, complete with a traditional Peruvian saddle and blanket. He looks totally at home. He is in tune with Pope Francis but no clone. For example, wearing the traditional papal garb , including the distinctive red cape called a mozzetta, which Francis declined to do, was a subtle sign of independence. The mozzetta symbolises the compassion of Christ for humanity when he sacrificed his life. His choice of Leo XIV echoes Pope Leo XIII's commitment to dialogue with the world, the deployment of diplomacy for peacemaking, the complementary roles of science and religion, and workers' rights to form unions, receive just wages and work in dignified conditions. [ Why the next Pope should be ... Leo Opens in new window ] The popes named Leo include five saints. The first, Leo the Great in the fifth century, was declared a doctor of the church by Pope Benedict XVI, so significant was his positive defence of Christian orthodoxy. The first Leo also persuaded Attila the Hun not to sack Rome and the Vandals to spare most of the art and architecture. In a world beset by war, unrest and polarisation, our new Pope Leo used the word 'peace' nine times in his first, short, handwritten address. He mentioned accompanying, walking together and encountering nine times, and building bridges three times. He quoted St Augustine: 'With you I am a Christian, for you a bishop.' In the sermon where the quote originates, Augustine speaks of the terror and burden of his office as bishop, which would be impossible without God's grace. Significantly, Augustine says: 'It consoles me more that I have been redeemed with you than that I have been placed over you.' The quote indicates that the new pope sees his role as walking together with all the baptised. He has expressed a particular wish to be close to those who suffer and has lived that in his commitment to the poor of Peru. [ Who is Robert Prevost? The American cardinal who is the new Pope Leo XIV Opens in new window ] Pope Leo XIV is embarking on one of the world's loneliest and most criticised roles. There are already criticisms of his role in historical sex abuse cases in Peru, allegations that he did not do enough, particularly from three women who say he never opened an investigation into their cases, and their abuser was never suspended from ministry. The Diocese of Chiclayo strongly disputes the allegations. On the other hand, in a Sky News interview, Juan Carlos Cruz, a Chilean victim of clerical sexual abuse in Chile who became extraordinarily close to Pope Francis, declared himself hopeful, grateful and happy to see Robert Prevost elected. How will Pope Leo be received in Ireland? Once the most fervent Catholics in Europe, many are cynical and disillusioned with the church and not remotely interested in a new pope. To have an impact in Ireland, Pope Leo XIV will have to show total commitment to rooting out the evil of sexual abuse in the church and holding bishops and church leaders accountable. He will have to speak of faith in terms accessible to everyone, but also not water down the challenge of belief. His fellow Augustinians are not alone in looking forward to and praying for the pontificate of their astute, understated brother with the heart of a lion when it comes to serving others.

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