09-05-2025
21 People Are Revealing Exactly How They Feel About The Newly Elected American Pope, And Yeah, People Have A Lot To Say
If you weren't obsessively watching the Vatican's chimney these past couple of days, you might have missed when the smoke turned white and a new pope was elected this week. His name? Pope Leo XIV, who is the first American pope to ever be elected.
Yes, you heard right. He's from Chicago, people.
But how are people feeling about this new American pope? Well, -Appleaday- asked: "The first ever American pope was just chosen, Pope Leo XIV (Robert Prevost). What do you think about the new pope?" and a lot of people answered. Here's what they said below.
1."First ever American and good friends with Francis. Hope this is a good continuation of the Francis years."
—Cunt_Puffin
"That's honestly my hope. Francis was a revitalizing figure for many young people in the Catholic Church. They need someone to capitalize on that momentum."
—concerned-koala
"Even I liked him, and I'm an atheist. He was a good guy."
—Fyrrys
2."The Vatican is making a strategic move. Whatever happens next for the world is going to depend a lot on what the US does. The US has a Catholic vice president and a predominantly Catholic Supreme Court right now. An American pope will be able to speak more directly to an American people who are going to be at the center of a lot of important things in the coming years. This isn't a pope who will just lie down and do whatever Trump demands, either. This is a pope with close ties to Francis and a history of opposition to Trump."
"I suspect that their hope is that he will act as a moral counterweight to the atrocities of the Trump administration. It's also worth noting that popes tend to choose a name that ties them to the previous pope who used that name. He chose Leo XIV.
Leo XIII was known for being extremely supportive of workers' rights. The Vatican made a fascinating move here. I think they see the writing on the wall for what's to come in the US and for the world. People will want to suggest that this is some corrupt bargain or something, but I don't believe it is."
—xGray3
3."Very good chance he's done a shot of Malort."
—ralphy1010
"New communion wine just dropped!"
—danielstover
4."I grew up Catholic in the U.S.: Catholic high school, Sunday Mass with my religious dad and grandparents, parties for family baptisms and First Communions, the whole thing. Even though I now consider myself a lapsed Catholic, I still pay attention when moments like this happen."
"The election of Leo is surreal. It feels monumental, especially coming from a very Catholic state like Massachusetts (lots of the Irish and Portuguese diaspora there are influenced by Catholicism). I was genuinely impressed by Pope Francis' papacy. He managed to try and modernize the church in a meaningful way while staying grounded in its institutional roots. A tough balance, especially as much of the world swings toward populism and rigid conservatism. I hope Leo continues that trajectory, especially with Trump and JD Vance likely to meet with him soon.
The name Leo is significant, too. Popes who've chosen that name have often been reformers and fighters. Leo XIII, for example, was the architect of Rerum Novarum, the Church's foundational document on social justice during the Industrial Revolution. That legacy hints that Leo XIV may share Francis' vision.
That said, I'm concerned about reports of criticism around Leo's handling of clergy abuse allegations. That issue remains a moral stain the Church still hasn't fully reckoned with. I really hope Leo doesn't waver from accountability or transparency.
If he follows the path Francis set, this could be another defining era for the Church. But we'll have to see. The symbolism is powerful. The substance has to follow."
—bawlhie62a2
5."Let's celebrate by getting Popeyes tonight. Pope Yes."
—Deep_Two_2341
"You are missing the bigger picture. He's from Chicago. Who does he root for, Cubs or the White Sox?"
—yep-MyFault_Again
6."Too soon to tell. There isn't a lot he has said publicly. His less-than-tolerant LGBTQ comments are from 13 years ago. So maybe he's evolved? People can and do often change. He did call JD Vance out a couple of months ago publicly. His record on the poor and the underserved is pretty damn solid. The sex abuse stuff is… I'm not sure. So far, I've seen very little evidence that he had a whole lot of power to do much at the time. We will see what his stances are in the coming months. I hope he continues to drive the church into modern times, but who knows? Cautiously optimistic is how I am."
—Wayward_Whines
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7."I think that it's going to be fun watching 47 try to pretend like he's best friends with the Pope just because he's American."
—bjackson12345
"We have different ideas of fun... but you may be right."
—Pika256
8."Someone high up in the American church once said that there wouldn't be an American pope until the US was in political decline. I agree with him that this is a further sign that the world no longer sees the US as the world's superpower. He's a naturalized citizen of Peru and left the US in his 20s, so I'm not overly worried about him being influenced by American political currents. As for my hopes/thoughts about him as pope, no opinion, I'm a former Catholic who doesn't care what the church says for the most part; I just hope he takes the church more in the direction Francis was moving it (e.g., more liberal/open/accepting)."
—jtexnl
9."I like that he is a mathematician."
—HRDBMW
10."John Paul II (Polish) was elected and helped rid Poland of communism during the Cold War. This is the most recent example of a pope being a major political figure without being a political figure, if that makes sense. We are about to watch right-wingers have a crisis of faith and politics like we've never seen before. Should be interesting."
—unabnormalday
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11."My Catholic family members seem happy, and they're not the kind to use religion to be holier-than-thou, so I'll take that as a good sign."
—Pearson94
12."Hopefully, he's as nice a guy as Francis. I know he's an Augustinian, and a lot of friars who are Augustinians do a lot of charitable work with poor people, at least here in Brazil."
—malu_saadi
13."I'm not so sure this isn't the Catholic Church taking a shot at Trump. Trump has usurped Christianity in this country for his own political purposes. It's wild to see people treating him as some sort of Jesus figure despite him quite obviously not caring about religion at all. Having an American pope with ties to Latin America who is seen as liberal and critical of Trump would really go a long way to undermine his support. I don't personally have that positive of an impression of the Catholic Church, or religion in general, but I'll take any ally I can get right now. All these guys cover for predators in their ranks. They'll call it Christian forgiveness."
—diito_ditto
14."Imma call him Pope Bob. Go bears."
—Legitimate_Glove_807
"Daaaaa Pope!"
—gangreen424
15."They picked the right guy for this moment. Aligned with the popular Francis, strong background in Latin America (which means he will have no patience with shipping innocent Latinos to El Salvador), still traditional enough not to send the right wing of the church into a tizzy. They'll retain the lapsed Catholics who came back because of Francis, at least."
—Brilliant_Tourist400
16."We got Bob Pope before GTA6."
—Optimal_scientists
17."I'm incredibly happy as an American Catholic. Never in a million years did I think we'd see a pope from the States. I always envied the celebration that happened in Argentina when Francis was elected. Now, I understand how they felt."
—JackC1126
18."Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and now: Chicago Pope. This television universe is getting wild."
—Romnonaldao
19."MAGA will hate him. The fact that he has criticized Trump and Vance, and didn't address the world in English, will make him a MAGA target once they realize what just happened. He's going to say be good to immigrants and LGBTQ+, and they will lose their minds (whatever mind they have left)."
—Indiana-Irishman
20."He's from Chicago. Ketchup on hot dogs is now a mortal sin."
—JMFR
finally, "Please don't accept a visit from JD Vance."
—rdldr1
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