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Yahoo
10-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Local Bishop thought possibility of an American Pope was ‘impossible'
MIDLAND, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- Habemus Pampa: 'We have a new pope.' Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo the Fourteenth, is the first American Pope to be selected to lead the Catholic Church. When a Pope is selected, they pick a new name that relates to the Christian tradition. The pope can pick a Saint name or a past Pope's name that they have a lot of respect for. 'For example, Pope Leo the Fourteenth had a lot of respect for Pope Leo the Thirteenth,' Bishop Sis said. 'For the good things he did for the Church and the world. So he decided to honor him by picking the same name.' The Bishop of the Diocese of San Angelo, Michael Sis, thought it was impossible to have an American as the next Pope. 'Well, the United States is such a powerful country, militarily, politically, and economically, Bishop Sis said. 'In general, people said it wouldn't make sense for the Pope to be from such a powerful country because a Pope needs to have a full sense of independence from all of that power.' The local Bishop is now looking forward to what's next for Leo the fourteenth. 'All of the Cardinals will declare that they will work with him,' Bishop Sis said. 'That they are going to be loyal servants of the church under his authority. That's the big step that comes next. Then all of the Cardinals will go home to work that they have waiting for them back home. Then the Pope will take up his duties as the new Holy Father of the Catholic Church.' Bishop Michael Sis is very happy to have a new pope and is asking people to pray for Pope Leo for a fruitful ministry. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CNN
09-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Analysis: A surreal moment as America celebrates its first pope — and wonders what his election means
Leo XIV was forged as much by the outside world as by the United States. That may be why he's America's first pope. When the newly elected pontiff walked onto the balcony overlooking St. Peter's Square on Thursday, he shocked the world. For as long as anyone can remember, it's been accepted that a conclave of cardinals would never choose an American. The United States was often deemed too powerful — militarily, diplomatically, and even culturally — for one of its own to control one of the world's most influential seats of moral authority: the Roman Catholic Church and its flock, which is currently more than three times the size of the US population. Yet, on Thursday, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost, whom his friends know as Bob, pulled off a feat many US believers thought they'd never live to see, sending outbursts of pride and pinch-me moments across the country of his birth. This is not primarily an American story, although it could change the nation. But hundreds of millions of believers around the world won't care that much that this is an unprecedented moment in US history. To them, Leo XIV is the Holy Father, who holds the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven as the Vicar of Christ. Yet at this of all times, there is a fascinating question: Why did the cardinals pick an American? Only the electors inside the Sistine Chapel fully understand the dynamics that led to Leo succeeding the late Pope Francis on the conclave's second day. But it seems an extraordinary coincidence that the first American pope arrived at just the moment when the United States, under its new, second-term President Donald Trump, is turning on many of the foreign approaches, alliances and even domestic values that it has long observed as the world's most powerful nation. Could the cardinals have been making an implicit argument that there is another American path? This is where the new pope's personal history may offer a clue. Prevost spent decades as a missionary and spent 20 years in Peru, where he is a naturalized citizen and served as a bishop. He speaks multiple languages and made no reference to his US heritage in his first public appearance as pontiff, instead speaking in Italian and Spanish and sending a greeting to his 'dear diocese of Chiclayo, in Peru.' It was as if the new pope was sufficiently separate from the country of his birth that there was no way he could be perceived as an instrument or endorsement of its policy or authority. For a new age — in which nationalism; a geopolitical creed of strong states preying on the weak; and authoritarianism are rising — the cardinals chose a pope born in a land where those earth-shaking changes are most obvious. Amid rising anger in Global South nations over economic disparities, and with hostility on the right against mass migration peaking in the US, the Roman Catholic Church again has a leader who lived his vow of poverty among the marginalized in Latin America, where many migrants to the US originate. At a time when the US administration is cutting assistance to the sick, for instance in the evisceration of USAID programs in Africa, the new head of the Roman Catholic Church has made serving the poor his vocation. It would be superficial to argue Leo's election is a rebuke of Trumpism. Yet it's also impossible to ignore that the Roman Catholic Church mastered the techniques of high politics centuries before the United States won its independence. Whatever the motivations of those who chose Pope Leo, events in the Vatican on Thursday have created a fascinating situation. There will now be two Americans wielding vast power on the world stage — one politically and the other spiritually — and the implicit comparisons and potential disagreements between Trump and Pope Leo will be impossible to ignore. If the papacy of the late Pope Francis is any guide, they are also likely to grow. This will further intensify the debate about America's identify and values, which is already raging inside and outside this country. It may cause new reflect about what Americans stands for and its global role. 'I am an American, I love America, I love the values that we stand for,' said the Rev. Robert Hagan, a friend of the new Pope Leo, who described the new Chicago-born pontiff as a man of depth, strength and serenity. 'Sometimes we are not perfect, right, we have flaws,' Hagan told CNN's Jake Tapper on Thursday. 'Sometimes the perception of us is rightly deserved, in terms of things that we could do better at and work on. But I think in Leo XIV, we have really what the best of what America stands for. For peace. For justice. That everyone has a role to play; that there should be opportunities for all.' While Americans may be seeking reasons why one of their own was chosen, there are many other possibilities. Prevost's nationality could be incidental to his election. The new pope became a powerful figure in the Roman Catholic Church during the papacy of Francis, when he moved to a key post in the Vatican — and his election is an implicit statement by the college of cardinals that the late pope's predominant concern for the poor and relatively progressive doctrinal themes of his tenure will be preserved, Bishop Robert Barron, of Rochester, Minnesota, who also knows the former Prevost, told CNN's Erin Burnett at the Vatican that he was 'shocked' at the outcome of the election. 'I was telling interviewers the day before the conclave … they will never elect an American pope.' Barron added, 'America runs the world politically, economically, a lot of popular culture, they won't let an American run the Church. Well, I was wrong.' But asked whether the cardinals had chosen to make a statement about America with the country moving away from some of its global relationships, Barron replied, 'I really think they chose the man. I think they recognized this man as uniquely qualified … he had an international feel, an American, yes indeed, but worked in Latin America, had been here for some years, speaks Italian fluently and knows the Curia. When you put all that together, you say, 'Well, there is a very qualified guy.'' Still, since this is America, the election of Leo is sure to become polarized. Some opinion formers of the Make America Great Again movement were already expressing dismay on Thursday on social media about his selection. Some conservatives had hoped for a new pope who would turn away from some of Francis's positions — for instance, on climate change. The late pope also issued an extraordinary condemnation of the Trump administration's mass deportation policies and warned that they would deprive migrants of their dignity. He appeared to take direct aim at Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, over his defense of the program on theological grounds. Given Leo's closeness to Francis, there are already some expectations that he might hold similar views, although he may be less strident in expressing them early in his papacy. Controversy is already surrounding reposts critical of Vance and Trump on immigration policy from an X account listed under Prevost's name. The account did not personally write any of the critical posts, but reposted articles and headlines from others. CNN has reached out to the Vatican, X and friends of Prevost, but has not been able to independently confirm the X account is connected to the newly elected Pope Leo XIV. Trump was gracious when he learned of Leo's election on Thursday, telling reporters at the White House that 'to have the Pope from America is a great honor.' While MAGA conservatives may have been hoping for a different pope, some liberals are sure to see his election and the Roman Catholic Church's decision to steer away from more conservative candidates as a rebuke to Trump's political creed and policies. Yet the issues and divides that preoccupy the Catholic Church don't always fit snugly over the deeply dug political battle lines of US politics. While he made a significant shift in the Church toward acceptance of LGBTQ Catholics, Francis rejected other liberal positions such as the right to an abortion and the ordination of women priests. These are also questions that cleave the Church in the United States, as well as globally. Those schisms, at a time of deep political angst — as well as raging wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and new clashes in South Asia — are the backdrop of a new papacy that will begin amid daunting global crises. That may have been on Leo's mind in his first speech as the head of the Roman Catholic Church as he pledged to serve Christ as a bridge to bring humanity together 'Peace be with you,' he said, in the first words ever uttered by an American pope.
CNN
09-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Analysis: A surreal moment as America celebrates its first pope — and wonders what his election means
Leo XIV was forged as much by the outside world as by the United States. That may be why he's America's first pope. When the newly elected pontiff walked onto the balcony overlooking St. Peter's Square on Thursday, he shocked the world. For as long as anyone can remember, it's been accepted that a conclave of cardinals would never choose an American. The United States was often deemed too powerful — militarily, diplomatically, and even culturally — for one of its own to control one of the world's most influential seats of moral authority: the Roman Catholic Church and its flock, which is currently more than three times the size of the US population. Yet, on Thursday, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost, whom his friends know as Bob, pulled off a feat many US believers thought they'd never live to see, sending outbursts of pride and pinch-me moments across the country of his birth. This is not primarily an American story, although it could change the nation. But hundreds of millions of believers around the world won't care that much that this is an unprecedented moment in US history. To them, Leo XIV is the Holy Father, who holds the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven as the Vicar of Christ. Yet at this of all times, there is a fascinating question: Why did the cardinals pick an American? Only the electors inside the Sistine Chapel fully understand the dynamics that led to Leo succeeding the late Pope Francis on the conclave's second day. But it seems an extraordinary coincidence that the first American pope arrived at just the moment when the United States, under its new, second-term President Donald Trump, is turning on many of the foreign approaches, alliances and even domestic values that it has long observed as the world's most powerful nation. Could the cardinals have been making an implicit argument that there is another American path? This is where the new pope's personal history may offer a clue. Prevost spent decades as a missionary and spent 20 years in Peru, where he is a naturalized citizen and served as a bishop. He speaks multiple languages and made no reference to his US heritage in his first public appearance as pontiff, instead speaking in Italian and Spanish and sending a greeting to his 'dear diocese of Chiclayo, in Peru.' It was as if the new pope was sufficiently separate from the country of his birth that there was no way he could be perceived as an instrument or endorsement of its policy or authority. For a new age — in which nationalism; a geopolitical creed of strong states preying on the weak; and authoritarianism are rising — the cardinals chose a pope born in a land where those earth-shaking changes are most obvious. Amid rising anger in Global South nations over economic disparities, and with hostility on the right against mass migration peaking in the US, the Roman Catholic Church again has a leader who lived his vow of poverty among the marginalized in Latin America, where many migrants to the US originate. At a time when the US administration is cutting assistance to the sick, for instance in the evisceration of USAID programs in Africa, the new head of the Roman Catholic Church has made serving the poor his vocation. It would be superficial to argue Leo's election is a rebuke of Trumpism. Yet it's also impossible to ignore that the Roman Catholic Church mastered the techniques of high politics centuries before the United States won its independence. Whatever the motivations of those who chose Pope Leo, events in the Vatican on Thursday have created a fascinating situation. There will now be two Americans wielding vast power on the world stage — one politically and the other spiritually — and the implicit comparisons and potential disagreements between Trump and Pope Leo will be impossible to ignore. If the papacy of the late Pope Francis is any guide, they are also likely to grow. This will further intensify the debate about America's identify and values, which is already raging inside and outside this country. It may cause new reflect about what Americans stands for and its global role. 'I am an American, I love America, I love the values that we stand for,' said the Rev. Robert Hagan, a friend of the new Pope Leo, who described the new Chicago-born pontiff as a man of depth, strength and serenity. 'Sometimes we are not perfect, right, we have flaws,' Hagan told CNN's Jake Tapper on Thursday. 'Sometimes the perception of us is rightly deserved, in terms of things that we could do better at and work on. But I think in Leo XIV, we have really what the best of what America stands for. For peace. For justice. That everyone has a role to play; that there should be opportunities for all.' While Americans may be seeking reasons why one of their own was chosen, there are many other possibilities. Prevost's nationality could be incidental to his election. The new pope became a powerful figure in the Roman Catholic Church during the papacy of Francis, when he moved to a key post in the Vatican — and his election is an implicit statement by the college of cardinals that the late pope's predominant concern for the poor and relatively progressive doctrinal themes of his tenure will be preserved, Bishop Robert Barron, of Rochester, Minnesota, who also knows the former Prevost, told CNN's Erin Burnett at the Vatican that he was 'shocked' at the outcome of the election. 'I was telling interviewers the day before the conclave … they will never elect an American pope.' Barron added, 'America runs the world politically, economically, a lot of popular culture, they won't let an American run the Church. Well, I was wrong.' But asked whether the cardinals had chosen to make a statement about America with the country moving away from some of its global relationships, Barron replied, 'I really think they chose the man. I think they recognized this man as uniquely qualified … he had an international feel, an American, yes indeed, but worked in Latin America, had been here for some years, speaks Italian fluently and knows the Curia. When you put all that together, you say, 'Well, there is a very qualified guy.'' Still, since this is America, the election of Leo is sure to become polarized. Some opinion formers of the Make America Great Again movement were already expressing dismay on Thursday on social media about his selection. Some conservatives had hoped for a new pope who would turn away from some of Francis's positions — for instance, on climate change. The late pope also issued an extraordinary condemnation of the Trump administration's mass deportation policies and warned that they would deprive migrants of their dignity. He appeared to take direct aim at Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, over his defense of the program on theological grounds. Given Leo's closeness to Francis, there are already some expectations that he might hold similar views, although he may be less strident in expressing them early in his papacy. Controversy is already surrounding reposts critical of Vance and Trump on immigration policy from an X account listed under Prevost's name. The account did not personally write any of the critical posts, but reposted articles and headlines from others. CNN has reached out to the Vatican, X and friends of Prevost, but has not been able to independently confirm the X account is connected to the newly elected Pope Leo XIV. Trump was gracious when he learned of Leo's election on Thursday, telling reporters at the White House that 'to have the Pope from America is a great honor.' While MAGA conservatives may have been hoping for a different pope, some liberals are sure to see his election and the Roman Catholic Church's decision to steer away from more conservative candidates as a rebuke to Trump's political creed and policies. Yet the issues and divides that preoccupy the Catholic Church don't always fit snugly over the deeply dug political battle lines of US politics. While he made a significant shift in the Church toward acceptance of LGBTQ Catholics, Francis rejected other liberal positions such as the right to an abortion and the ordination of women priests. These are also questions that cleave the Church in the United States, as well as globally. Those schisms, at a time of deep political angst — as well as raging wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and new clashes in South Asia — are the backdrop of a new papacy that will begin amid daunting global crises. That may have been on Leo's mind in his first speech as the head of the Roman Catholic Church as he pledged to serve Christ as a bridge to bring humanity together 'Peace be with you,' he said, in the first words ever uttered by an American pope.
Washington Post
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
6 Catholics and advocates on their hopes for Pope Leo XIV
It will take time to get used to the idea of the leader of the Catholic Church having grown up on Chicago's South Side. A pope who grew up with deep dish, with Harry Caray broadcasting White Sox games on the radio? The mind boggles. But Leo XIV's biography — he is the first American-born pope and has deep roots in his adopted home of Peru — might help him smooth some of the church waters roiled during Francis's pontificate. When the late Holy Father would offer off-the-cuff remarks during in-flight news conferences, he often gave conservative Catholics headaches, even if his changes to church practice ended up more limited than progressive factions wanted.
The Sun
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
JD Vance makes peace offering to new Pope after Cardinal Robert Prevost's blunt message to VP about being ‘wrong'
JD Vance has signaled his support for the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, despite the pontiff apparently not being a fan of the vice president. Cardinal Robert Prevost, the first ever American to be elected as Holy Father, made a point to share articles criticizing fellow Catholic Vance just months before he was chosen to lead the global church. 3 3 On Thursday evening, a crowd of pilgrims let out a triumphant roar of cheers after white smoke billowed from the Vatican, indicating that a new holy leader had been chosen. Several tense moments later, parishioners looked up in shock as Prevost emerged from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica and said, "Peace be with you." Prevost, who was born in Chicago, Illinois, has made history as the first American Pope. Throughout the Catholic Church's 2,000-year history, Americans had often been passed up for the job because of the country's established global prominence. However, Prevost, 69, was a unique choice as he was a naturalized citizen of Peru, where he served as a seminary leader and apostolic administrator. In recent years, Prevost has become indispensable to the Vatican. In 2023, Pope Francis hand-selected him to head the office that vets global bishops. That position elevated him above other cardinals considered to head the church, making him an easier choice. Also in recent years, Prevost has kept up an intriguing internet presence, where he often appeared to share his true thoughts on Donald Trump's second presidency. His latest repost on X was a critique of Trump's immigration crackdown from Catholic commentator Rocco Palmo. In the post, Palmo quoted, "Do you not see the suffering? Is your conscience not disturbed? How can you stay quiet?" New Pope elected as white smoke rises from Conclave's ritual chimney-- And just a few posts before this, Prevost boldly shared a spate of articles questioning statements made by Vance, who converted to Catholicism throughout his 30s. One article was an opinion piece with the headline "JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others." And the other was an article criticizing Vance after Pope Francis penned a letter to American bishops and encouraged them to support illegal immigrants being targeted by the crackdown. But despite these glaring signs of apparent mistrust of their administration, Vance and Trump have both sent their well-wishes to the new leader. In a post on X, Vance wrote, "Congratulations to Leo XIV, the first American Pope, on his election! "I'm sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church. May God bless him!" And before that, Trump took to Truth Social to say, "It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope." "What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV," he wrote. "It will be a very meaningful moment!" 'SUCH AN HONOR' Trump stressed that it was a "great honor" for America to be represented in the papacy when quizzed about the election by reporters. "To have the Pope from the United States of America, that's a great honor," he said. "I'm watching it and they say, 'He's from America,' I said, 'That's great!'"
