Rome
CNN
—
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has made history.
The newly elected pontiff, now known as Pope Leo XIV, is the first pope from the United States, and the new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.
The 69-year-old from Chicago stepped into his role as the 267th pope on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica on Thursday evening, addressing thousands of cheering Catholics with the words: “Peace be with you all.”
As he addressed the crowds in St. Peter’s Square, Leo paid tribute to the late pontiff Francis, urging them to remember the late pope’s legacy of unity before outlining his own vision for the Catholic Church.
“We have to seek together to be a missionary church. A church that builds bridges and dialogue,” he said. Speaking in Italian, Leo called on people to “show our charity” to others “and be in dialogue with love.”
Leo was chosen just two days after a group of 133 cardinals gathered in conclave to select a new pontiff, suggesting that he quickly impressed his peers during the secretive process. He is expected to build on Francis’ reforms.
His predecessors, Francis and Benedict XVI, were both revealed in the evening of the conclave’s second day, while John Paul II, the longest-reigning pope of modern times, was selected on the third day, in 1978.
The coming days are for celebration; Leo’s name will be uttered in homilies and Masses across the Roman Catholic world, and will spark particularly joyous scenes in his home country, where one in five adults identifies as Catholic.
But leading the largest Christian denomination through an unpredictable era will require difficult and consequential decisions.
The new pope inherits a church whose image and ambitions were transformed by its predecessor; Francis pulled the priorities of the church away from social issues such as abortion, homosexuality, gender roles and contraception, advocating instead for the world’s poor, displaced and needy, and instilling a mission anchored in altruism.
And he must deal with crises from within, too. Francis’ failure to bring a close to the years-long scandal of child sexual abuse in the church despite some important steps will also reverberate through his successor’s papacy.
How to continue that trajectory will be a defining choice for the new pontiff, who, in his first moments as the new pope, signaled respect for Francis’ legacy but perhaps also a desire to set his papacy apart. In a reversion to norms, he wore traditional papal robes, whereas Francis had stepped out onto the balcony in a simple white cassock.
CNN One Thing
Conclave Watch: An American Pope
We have a pope – and he’s an American! Cardinal Robert Prevost has been selected as the next pope, the first American pontiff in history. He will be known as Pope Leo XIV. We break down the significance of this unprecedented moment and what challenges the Catholic Church’s new leader will face as he takes over.
Guest: Christopher Lamb, CNN Vatican Correspondent
May 08, 2025 • 19 min
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Considered a highly capable and accomplished leader, Prevost most recently headed the powerful Vatican office for new bishop appointments, the Dicastery for Bishops, assessing candidates and making recommendations to the late pope. Francis appointed Prevost to the position, indicating he saw the US cleric as an effective leader.
He also made him president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, where Prevost had spent much of his earlier career as a missionary.
The new pontiff is a member of the Augustinian religious order and spent more than a decade as its prior general, giving him experience of heading an order spread across the world.
He worked for a decade in Trujillo, Peru, and was later appointed bishop of Chiclayo, another Peruvian city, where he served from 2014 to 2023. In 2015, he also received Peruvian citizenship.
In his inaugural address as pope, Leo switched from speaking in Italian to Spanish – one of several European languages he speaks – to address his “beloved diocese” in Chiclayo.
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte mirrored that sentiment, calling his election a “historic moment for Peru and the world,” in a Thursday address.
“In our lands, he sowed hope, walked alongside the most needy, and shared the joys of our people. … He chose to be one of us, to live among us, and to carry in his heart the faith, culture and dreams of this nation,” Boluarte said.
In the United States, President Donald Trump called the news a “great honor” for America, adding he looks forward to meeting the new pope. Vice President JD Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, said in a message on X: “I’m sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church.”
While it is often said cardinal electors would always shy away from choosing a pope from the United States, because of America’s outsized global political influence, Prevost’s long experience in Peru may have mitigated those fears among the electors.
“He’s somebody that, even though he’s from the West, would be very attentive to the needs of a global church,” said Elise Allen, CNN’s Vatican analyst. “You’re talking about somebody who spent over half of his ecclesial career abroad as a missionary in Peru.”
Allen added that he’s seen as a talented leader in Vatican circles. “He’s seen as somebody who is calm and balanced, who is evenhanded, and who is very clear on what he thinks needs to be done … but he’s not overly forceful in trying to make that happen.”
Prevost earned his bachelor’s in mathematics from Villanova University in Pennsylvania and went on receive his diploma in theology from the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago.
He was later sent to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University and was ordained as a priest in June 1982. Later in his career, he taught canon law in the seminary in Trujillo, Peru.
In an interview with Vatican News shortly after he became the leader of the Dicastery for Bishops, Prevost said: “I still consider myself a missionary. My vocation, like that of every Christian, is to be a missionary, to proclaim the Gospel wherever one is.”
Adding to festivities, and to the new pope’s diary commitments, is the fact that 2025 is a jubilee year for the church – a special celebration announced by Pope John Paul II 25 years ago, which sees a busy schedule of Vatican-organized events.
But the world is also watching to see whether he will follow in the Franciscan path.
Francis’ rejection of opulence and his softer tone on social issues was praised by some Western leaders, but there remains a faction in the church advocating for a stricter line on questions of sex, gender, marriage and migration.
Asked about the contributions of three women who were made members of the Dicastery for Bishops, Prevost told Vatican News: “I think their appointment is more than just a gesture on the part of the Pope to say that there are now women here, too. There is a real, genuine, and meaningful participation that they offer at our meetings when we discuss the dossiers of candidates.”
He must also choose carefully when to intervene on the world stage. Francis became increasingly political in the final years of his papacy, making the case for the rights of migrants, urging a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and suggesting – to the ire of Kyiv – that Ukraine should wave “the white flag” and make concessions to end Russia’s war in the country.
These ongoing conflicts, and the rise of populism and authoritarianism around the world, set a complicated context in which the new pope – himself an important figure in global diplomacy – will operate.
And how Leo will handle the clerical sex abuse scandals that have long plagued the Church could also define his papacy. Though Francis spoke defensively about his record on the matter, and took some important steps to tackle systemic issues involving abuse, the previous pope was accused by survivors’ groups of failing to hold accountable bishops and cardinals accused of covering up abuse.
Previously addressing the responsibility of combating clerical abuse, Prevost told Vatican News: “There are places where good work has already been done for years and the rules are being put into practice. At the same time, I believe that there is still much to learn.”
Last year, Francis’ commission for child protection said in its first report that parts of the church are still failing to ensure that abuse is properly reported, and raised concerns about a “lack of transparency” in how the Vatican handled cases.
CNN’s Lauren Kent and Christopher Lamb reported from Rome, and Rob Picheta, Christian Edwards and Kara Fox reported from London. CNN’s Abel Alvarado and Elise Hammond contributed to this report.
