Vatican City—In a historic moment for the Catholic Church, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has been elected as the 267th Pope, taking the name Leo XIV. The announcement, made on May 8, 2025, from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, drew cheers from the gathered crowds and marked the beginning of a new chapter for the global Catholic community.
Cardinal Protodeacon Dominique Mamberti said:
Annuntio vobis gaudium: HABEMUS PAPAM! Eminentissimum ac reverendissimum Dominum Robertum Franciscum, Sanctae Romane Ecclesiae Cardinalem Prevost, qui sibi nomen imposuit Leo XIV (I announce to you a great joy: WE HAVE A POPE, the Most Eminent and Most Reverend Lord Robert Francis, Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church Prevost, who has taken the name Leo XIV)
A Life of Service
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost’s journey to the papacy is marked by extensive pastoral work and dedication. The first Augustinian Pope, Leo XIV, is the second Roman Pontiff, after Pope Francis, from the Americas—the first from the USA. Born in Chicago, Illinois, on September 14, 1955, his path led him to the Order of St. Augustine. He was born to Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martín and John Joseph.
Key biographical points include:
- Early Life, Education, and Vocation:
- He earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University in 1977.
- On September 1, 1977, he entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.) in Saint Louis, in the Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Chicago, and made his first profession on September 2, 1978. On August 29, 1981, he made his solemn vows.
- He received a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.
- In Rome, he was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, at the Augustinian College of Saint Monica by Archbishop Jean Jadot, then pro-president of the Secretariat for Non-Christians, which later became the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and then the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue.
- Prevost obtained his licentiate in 1984. The following year, while preparing his doctoral thesis, he was sent to the Augustinian mission in Chulucanas, Piura, Peru (1985–1986). In 1987, he defended his doctoral dissertation on “The Role of the Local Prior in the Order of Saint Augustine.” He was appointed vocation director and missions director of the Augustinian Province of “Mother of Good Counsel” in Olympia Fields, Illinois (USA).
- Missionary Work:
- He spent many years serving in Peru, where he became deeply involved in the lives of the local communities. He joined the mission in Trujillo, also in Peru, as director of the joint formation project for Augustinian candidates from the vicariates of Chulucanas, Iquitos, and Apurímac.
- His work in Peru included serving as a missionary, teaching in seminaries, and holding various diocesan positions.
- He also gained Peruvian citizenship.
- In 1999, he was elected Provincial Prior of the Augustinian Province of “Mother of Good Counsel” in Chicago. Two and a half years later, the ordinary General Chapter of the Order of Saint Augustine elected him as Prior General, confirming him in 2007 for a second term.
- Bishop and Vatican Service:
- Pope Francis appointed him on November 3, 2014, as Apostolic Administrator of the Peruvian Diocese of Chiclayo, elevating him to the episcopal dignity as Titular Bishop of Sufar.
- On September 26, 2015, Pope Francis appointed him Bishop of Chiclayo. In March 2018, he was elected second vice-president of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference, where he also served as a member of the Economic Council and president of the Commission for Culture and Education.
- In 2019, Pope Francis appointed him a member of the Congregation for the Clergy (July 13, 2019), and in 2020, a member of the Congregation for Bishops (November 21). Meanwhile, on April 15, 2020, he was also appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Peruvian Diocese of Callao.
- Before his election, on January 30, 2023, Pope Francis asked him to serve as the Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, a crucial role in appointing bishops worldwide. He was also President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, which promoted him to the rank of Archbishop. Pope Francis created him a Cardinal in the Consistory of September 30, 2023, and assigned him the Diaconate of Saint Monica. He officially took possession of his titular church on January 28, 2024.
- On October 4, 2023, Pope Francis appointed him as a member of the Dicasteries for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches), for the Doctrine of the Faith, for the Eastern Churches, for the Clergy, for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, for Culture and Education, for Legislative Texts, and of the Pontifical Commission for the Vatican City State.
- On February 6, 2025, Pope Francis promoted him to the Order of Bishops and granted him the title of the Suburbicarian Church of Albano.
- His work within the Vatican has shown him to be a person who is very well known by the cardinals who elected him.
