Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected Pope on May 8, 2025 (local time), taking the name Leo XIV.

Pope Leo XIV is the Church’s first Augustinian Pope, and the first born in North America.

The future Pope was born and raised in Chicago in the United States in 1955. At 27, he was sent to Rome to study Canon Law at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum). Later, he served a mission in Peru, and became the Bishop of Chiclayo.

In 2023, then-Pope Francis called him to Rome to serve as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. Later appointed by Francis as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, he became a Cardinal in 2024.

When Pope Francis was hospitalised in early 2025, the future Pope Leo XIV presided over the Rosary for Pope Francis’s health in Saint Peter’s Square.

A Pope of peace

Pope Leo XIV calls us to pray for peace in a world in the midst of storms. The new Pope’s first words when addressing the world from the Central Loggia of St Peter’s Basilica not long after his election were “Peace be with you!”

He also said:

“God loves us, all of us, evil will not prevail. We are all in the hands of God. Without fear, united, hand in hand with God and among ourselves, we will go forward. We are disciples of Christ, Christ goes before us, and the world needs His light. Humanity needs Him like a bridge to reach God and His love. You help us to build bridges with dialogue and encounter so we can all be one people always in peace.”

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  • A rain-soaked message of mercy inside Bata Prison
    on April 22, 2026 at 9:06 pm

    On his last full day in Africa, Pope Leo XIV travels to Bata, where he has a moving encounter with inmates in the city’s prison. Read all  

  • Day Ten in Africa: Dancing in the rain in Bata
    on April 22, 2026 at 8:41 pm

    On the last full day of his Apostolic Journey across Africa, Pope Leo celebrates Mass at the continent’s second-largest church, tells prisoners that “no one is excluded from God’s love”, and watches as the young people of Bata dance in the rain. Read all  

  • Pope encourages young people to bear witness to Christ with courage and joy
    on April 22, 2026 at 6:46 pm

    To the young people and families gathered at the Bata Stadium, Leo XIV, responding one by one to the testimonies presented for reflection, spoke about the value of effort and discipline in life and dignified work, the challenges faced by women in the workplace, the happiness found in giving oneself to God, and the exciting mission of being spouses and parents. Read all  

  • Pope prays at Bata Memorial for Victims of 7 March 2021 blasts
    on April 22, 2026 at 5:00 pm

    During his visit to Equatorial Guinea‘s coastal city of Bata, Pope Leo XIV honours the victims of a tragic explosion in a military base in 2021. Read all  

  • Pope at Bata Prison: ‘No one is excluded from God’s love’
    on April 22, 2026 at 4:32 pm

    During his visit to Bata Prison in Equatorial Guinea, Pope Leo XIV emphasised that no one is excluded from God’s love, calling for justice that restores dignity and supports rehabilitation, while encouraging inmates to believe in the possibility of change. Read all