Ever since the death of the 266th Pope—Pope Francis—last month, Catholics and non-religious folks alike have been anticipating who will be the 267th.

Today, he was announced, and he was not who we were expecting.

The First American Pope

Robert Francis Prevost, or Pope Leo XIV, was selected by the Vatican today. Suspicions of his potential election arose quite recently but were few and far between. Being unlike any other pope in history, he was born on American soil—Chicago, Illinois to be specific.

But who is Robert Francis Prevost? Why is he significant?

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Background

Prevost was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois. Raised in a Catholic family, he served as an altar boy as a child.

But Prevost did not simply walk the walk—attending Sunday Masses because his parents wished. According to his brother, the now pope aspired to be a priest from a young age.

Aspire he did! In 1977, Prevost became a novice with the Order of Saint Augustine, taking his first vows in September 1978 and his solemn vows in August 1981.

Joining the Priesthood

On June 19, 1982, Prevost’s longstanding aspiration to priesthood came to fruition when he was ordained.

He served as the chancellor of the Territorial Prelature of Chulucanas, joining the 1985 Peru-based Augustinian mission. Returning to the country in 1988, he resided there for a decade to lead the Augustinian seminary. This included judging in the ecclesiastical court, leading a congregation, instructing canon law in the diocesan seminary, and much more.

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Returning to Illinois in 1998, he was chosen to be the provincial of the Augustinian Province of Chicago. Three years later, he became the Prior General of the Augustinians until 2013.

In 2014, Pope Francis selected Prevost as the apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo—and the titular bishop of Sufar. In 2019, he became a member of the Congregation for the Clergy, and in 2020, the Congregation for Bishops.

On February 6, 2025, Pope Francis gave Prevost a promotion to the cardinal-bishop.

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Questionable Choices

Yet despite the new pope’s lengthy list of accomplishments, his record may not be as upstanding as it seems.

In 1999, Prevost began to serve the Order of St. Augustine's Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel as prior provincal. The following year, he allowed Augustinian Priest, James Ray, to live supervised at St.

John Stone Friary. This wouldn't be an issue, if Ray was not suspended from ministry for allegedly se*ually abusing minors. Yet, the priest was, for nearly a decade at this time.

This case has, understandably, caused concern among survivors and their advocates over the seriousness in which Prevost handles situations of this manner.

Yet, this is not the only scenario that has caused skeptics of the Pope to emerge.

According to France24,

"Prevost oversaw cases filed... against bishops accused of sexual abuse and of cover-up. He maintained the secrecy of that process, releasing no names and no data," Barrett Doyle added.

"Under his watch, no complicit bishop was stripped of his title."

"Most disturbing is an allegation from victims in his former diocese in Peru that he never opened a canonical case into alleged sexual abuse carried out by two priests," she added."

A manner as serious as this is a justifiable cause for concern, and concern, many unfortunately have to carry now.

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Pope Leo XIV’s Views

Pope Francis was both criticized and praised for his seemingly progressive stances on several issues—religiously and politically.

So, upon discussions of a new pope to replace the now-deceased one, curiosity was widespread on whether his replacement would follow in his footsteps or revert to commonly held ‘traditional’ views.

Gathering former statements, Prevost has fought for the Church to take more action to reduce climate change.

He opposes the ordination of women to the priesthood, yet did not seem hard-pressed against Pope Francis (for the first time in history) appointing three women to the Dicastery for Bishops, which participates in the selection of new bishops. In contrast, he appeared to support the notion.

The new pope has shared criticism of Donald Trump and J.D. Vance’s policies regarding immigration, and was a supporter of Venezuelan refugees in Peru in 2017. Pope Leo XIV also showed solidarity with George Floyd and his family in 2020 upon his murder.

Continuing, Prevost has shared opposition to several hot topics such as abortion, the death penalty, and euthanasia—otherwise known as assisted suicide.

Unlike Pope Francis, who seemed to take a more progressive stance on homosexuality, Pope Leo XIV seems—or seemed—not to follow his predecessor’s train of thought.

Pink News reports,

“However… in 2012, Prevost was critical of entertainment media that held ‘sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the gospel,’ including the ‘homosexual lifestyle’ and ‘alternative families comprised of same-s*x partners and their adopted children.’”

He also has taken a stance against Peru teaching gender ideology in schools because he feels they teach genders that “don’t exist.”

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Anticipation Remains

Joined by either excitement or dread, the anticipation remains among millions to see how Pope Francis' successor will lead the Catholic Church as Pope Leo XIV.

Will he make history just as his predecessor? Only time will tell.