Pope Leo XIV is the 1st American Pope.
POPE LEO XIV – Here are some details about the Roman Catholic’s new leader, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost.
Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum: Habemus Papam!” (“I bring you tidings of great joy: We have a pope!”)
A new pope has been selected. After the fourth ballot of 133 cardinals as eligible electors, a new pope has been selected. The white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel, and the bells of St. Peter’s Basilica rang—these are indications that we now have a new pope.
The Roman Catholic Church elected Robert Francis Prevost as their pontiff on Thursday. He is the 267th pope in history, the successor of Pope Francis. He took the name Pope Leo XIV.
About the new pope
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was born in Chicago and has views similar to and close to those of the late Pope Francis. He was born on September 14, 1955, and entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA) in 1977 and made his solemn vows in 1981.
He took up a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University in 1977, a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, and both a licentiate and doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.
“The role of the local prior in the Order of Saint Augustine” was his doctoral thesis.
In 1982, he was ordained as a priest. In 1985, he joined the Augustinian mission in Peru and was the chancellor of the Territorial Prélature of Chulucanas from 1985 to 1986.
In 2014, he was appointed by Pope Francis as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo and became the Bishop of Chiclayo in 2015. From 2018 to 2023, he was vice president and member of the permanent council of the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference.
In 2020 and 2021, he was apostolic administrator of Callao, Peru.
In January 2023, he was appointed prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. This was the position he held until Pope Francis died. On September 30, 2023, he was designated Cardinal.
Meanwhile, since 1900, no conclave has lasted for more than four days. In 2005, Pope Benedict XVI was elected after less than 48 hours of voting, which was the same as Pope Francis.
John Paul I reigned for 33 days in 1978, and he was elected on the fourth ballot, while his successor, John Paul II, was elected on the eighth. The longest conclave was in 1268 after the death of Pope Clement IV. His successor was selected after 1,006 days.
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