We joyfully welcome Pope Leo XIV

The world was stunned by the sudden death of Pope Francis on April 21, especially since he had appeared in public the day before, Easter Sunday, to give his blessing from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica.

A conclave was therefore held to elect a new pope. Surprise! A cardinal no one expected was chosen—an American pope, the first in history (and no, it's not Donald Trump!). Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69 years old, born in Chicago, but who spent more than 20 years as a missionary and bishop in Peru, was recently made a cardinal and appointed head of the Vatican's Dicastery for Bishops. He also served two terms as superior general of his congregation, the Augustinian Friars, present in over 50 countries—an experience that allowed him to travel the world extensively.

It is said that the cardinals in the conclave were looking for someone who had lived on more than one continent, spoke several languages, had deep missionary and pastoral experience, was well-versed in doctrine and canon law, knew the Roman Curia well, and could build unity between progressive and conservative trends in the Church. Well, Cardinal Prevost met all these criteria brilliantly. He speaks English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Quechua, which he learned in Peru.

In addition to holding degrees in mathematics, philosophy, and theology, Leo XIV also earned a doctorate in canon law—showing that he takes Church law and regulations seriously and will express the Gospel's teachings clearly and without confusion, never compromising on the truth. Truly, he is a gift from Heaven, a blessing from God that fills us with hope for the future of the Church. Deo gratias—thanks be to God!

Another major surprise was his choice of papal name: Leo XIV. It has been over a century since a pope bore the name Leo—the last was Leo XIII, who served from 1878 to 1903. The choice of this name is a program in itself, and recalling the key themes of Pope Leo XIII's pontificate gives us insight into what Pope Leo XIV's agenda might look like in the coming years. It was Leo XIII who, in 1886, composed the Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel, to be recited at the end of every Mass. (Leo XIV, incidentally, was elected pope on May 8—the feast of the apparition of Saint Michael the Archangel at Mount Gargano in Italy.)

Leo XIII was nicknamed the "Pope of the Rosary," having written 11 encyclicals on the subject and encouraging the recitation of the Rosary as a powerful weapon in facing the challenges of our times. He promoted the philosophy and theology of Saint Thomas Aquinas, but is best known for his major encyclical Rerum Novarum (Latin for "new things")—a declaration of how the new pontiff hoped to orient the Church. It condemned Marxist socialism and injustices against workers and marked the beginning of what would become the Church's body of social teaching—further developed by later popes, especially from Pius XI to Francis.

On May 10, 2025, Pope Leo XIV explained his choice of name in this way:

"Pope Leo XIII, in his historic Encyclical Rerum Novarum, addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defence of human dignity, justice and labour."

Our new Holy Father also gave a glimpse of his pastoral program on May 9, during his first Mass as pope, when he emphasized the importance of proclaiming the Gospel and bearing witness to our faith:

"Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent. Settings where other securities are preferred, like technology, money, success, power, or pleasure.

"These are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied. Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society."

In closing, we make our own these words from the Archbishop of Montreal, Most Rev, Christian Lepine: website of the Diocese of Montreal: "Let us accompany our new Pope Leo XIV in prayer. May he be strengthened by grace, supported by our filial affection, and guided by the Holy Spirit in his mission of service to the Church and to the world."