Australia and the World Past and Present

Robert Prevost has been elected the next Pope and has taken on the papal name Leo XIV.

He becomes the first Pope from the US.

He has also spent a considerable amount of time living in Peru.

He is someone that North American and South American cardinals can both identify with.

Prevost was born in Chicago to parents of Spanish and Italian heritage.

He hails from the Augustinian Order and is the first Pope with this background.

He was appointed as the bishop of Chiclayo by Pope Francis.

He was promoted to archbishop in 2023 and only a few months later he was made cardinal.

He was then elevated to the position on prefect of Dicastery for Bishops. So he understands well the process for selecting and supervising bishops.

His election as Pope is widely interpreted as a continuation of Pope Francis’ legacy. The new Pope is known for his emphasis on refugees, the poor and the environment.

This conclave took only 4 rounds of voting to arrive at their decision.

This is relatively fast. It is a vote of confidence in the new Pope. A longer conclave would have meant that the college of cardinals were more divided in choosing a successor.

It remains to be seen how Pope Leo will approach controversial aspects of Church teaching. It might be the case that the conservative cardinals feel comfortable with Prevost’s views on canon law. Or it may be that the number of more progressive cardinals drowned out any influence that conservative cardinals could muster.

At this point in time, it appears that the Catholic Church will continue along the path begun by Pope Francis.