Latest news with #newpope
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Incredible': West Michigan seminarians in Rome as Pope Leo XIV elected
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Seminarians from the Grand Rapids were among the thousands who celebrated in St. Peter's Square Thursday as a new pope was elected. The three Diocese of Grand Rapids students at first did not believe the news that the new pope, Leo XIV, is American. 'It was absolutely crazy. It was insane,' Willison said. 'I was absolutely shocked. I never thought it was possible. The people around me started saying, 'I think he's an American.'' Robert Prevost elected the first American pope in history Daniel Willison and Dominic Klaes were in the security line when the pope was announced. 'We were like, 'Is this it?' And so we kept like trying to peek around the columns and then we saw it,' Willison said. They saw white smoke emerging from the Sistine Chapel, where cardinals were gathered for the second day of the conclave. 'I was very surprised as to the timing of it all. I really thought that the pope would be elected sometime later in the week and so actually I was considering not even going down to St. Peter's Square,' Klaes said. Jack McCarthy rushed to the square after he heard the news. 'I saw on my phone that the white smoke was coming out of the chimney and so I ended up getting on an electric bike and biking, trying to bike to St. Peter's, trying to get there as fast as I could, but I ran into 5 o'clock traffic,' McCarthy said. New pope attended Catholic high school in West Michigan He made it in time to see Robert Prevost emerge onto the balcony to address the faithful below for the first time as Pope Leo XIV. 'It was really incredible. I mean, I thought the funeral (for Pope Francis) was a big crowd, but this was — this was really crazy. I think everyone descended on St. Peter's,' McCarthy said. Back in West Michigan, Diocese of Grand Rapids Bishop David Walkowiak celebrated a Mass of thanksgiving for the election of a new pope at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew Friday. The cathedral was decorated in the colors of the flag of Vatican City. The bishop, too, was surprised by the choice of Pope Leo XIV, but welcomed the news of a Midwestern-born pope. Traditionally, Americans have been considered long shots for pope because of the global influence of American society and the power of the government. But Walkowiak said the pope understands America and will be an asset to the church. 'This familiarity is just an amazing thing. To have somebody whose native language is English, American English, who came from Chicago, which is not that far away from Grand Rapids, it's kind of exciting,' Walkowiak said. The seminarians agreed. 'It's really special, I think, to have a holy father that's from our country and who's from our region of the country,' McCarthy said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CTV News
09-05-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
‘Come together in unity': Catholics in Montreal look to new pope with hope, optimism
Catholics visiting St. Joseph's Oratory in Montreal on Friday said they were hopeful and optimistic about the election of the new pope.
NHK
09-05-2025
- Politics
- NHK
Filipinos hail new pope
People in the Philippines, Asia's largest Catholic country, are hailing the first-ever American pontiff. More than 80% of the country's 100 million inhabitants are Catholic. Filipinos nationwide are celebrating the new pope. Catholics in Manila attended mass on Friday. They expressed hope the new pontiff will do his best for the people of the world. A man who attended the mass welcomed the news of the new pope. He added the cardinals elected one quickly and that they would not have picked someone who did not embody the principles of the Lord. Meanwhile, many Filipinos had hoped their country would produce the first Asian pope. Media outlets said one leading contender was Philippine Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who is known as the "Asian Francis." He gained popularity for his work to help the poor. A woman said they prayed that Tagle would be picked, but she understands there might have been a reason he was not chosen. She added she is very happy to have a new pope. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. released a statement saying the Filipino people are praying for the new pope's strength as he leads the faithful with "grace, wisdom and compassion."
Arab News
09-05-2025
- General
- Arab News
Leo XIV's brother recalls feeling of ‘disbelief' over his sibling becoming pope
NEW LENOX, Ill: When white smoke poured out of the Sistine Chapel revealing that a new pope had been chosen, John Prevost turned on his television in Illinois, called his niece and they watched in awe as his brother's name was announced. 'She started screaming because it was her uncle and I was in the moment of disbelief that this cannot be possible because it's too far from what we thought would happen,' Prevost said Thursday in an interview with The Associated Press from his home in New Lenox, Illinois. Next, he said he felt an intense sense of pride that his brother, Cardinal Robert Prevost, had become the 267th pontiff to lead the Catholic Church, making the Chicago-born missionary the first US pope. 'It's quite an honor; it's quite a once in a lifetime,' he said. 'But I think it's quite a responsibility and I think it's going to lead to bigger and better things, but I think people are going to watch him very closely to see what he's doing.' Robert Prevost, a 69-year-old member of the Augustinian religious order who spent his career ministering in Peru, took the name Leo XIV. John Prevost described his brother as being very concerned for the poor and those who don't have a voice. He said he expects him to be a 'second Pope Francis.' 'He's not going to be real far left and he's not going to be real far right,' he added. 'Kind of right down the middle.' At one point during the interview, John Prevost realized he had missed several calls from his brother, so he gave the new pope a call back. Leo told him he wasn't interested in being part of the interview and after a brief message of congratulations and discussion in which they talked like any two brothers about travel arrangements, they hung up. The new pope grew up the youngest of three boys. John Prevost, who was only a year older than him, said he remembers Robert Prevost being very good in school as a kid and enjoying playing tag, Monopoly and Risk. From a young age, he said he knew his brother was going to be a priest. Although he didn't expect him to become pope, he recalled a neighbor predicting that very thing when Robert Prevost was only a first grader. 'She sensed that at 6 years old,' he said. 'How she did that, who knows. It took this long, but here he is, first American pope.' When Robert Prevost graduated eighth grade, he left for seminary school, his brother said. 'There's a whole period there where we didn't really grow up together,' he said. 'It was just on vacations that we had contact together.' These days, the brothers talk on the phone every day, John Prevost said. Robert Prevost will call him and they'll discuss everything from politics to religion and even play the day's Wordle. John Prevost said he's not sure how much time his brother will have to talk as the new pope and how they'll handle staying in touch in the future. 'It's already strange not having someone to talk to,' he said.
Washington Post
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Leo XIV's brother recalls feeling of 'disbelief' over his sibling becoming pope
NEW LENOX, Ill. — When white smoke poured out of the Sistine Chapel revealing that a new pope had been chosen, John Prevost turned on his television in Illinois, called his niece and they watched in awe as his brother's name was announced . 'She started screaming because it was her uncle and I was in the moment of disbelief that this cannot be possible because it's too far from what we thought would happen,' Prevost said Thursday in an interview with The Associated Press from his home in New Lenox, Illinois.
