Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo XIV (born Robert Francis Prevost, pronounced PREE-vohst; September 14, 1955) is the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City. He is the first pope to have been born in the United States, the first to hold either U . or Peruvian citizenship, the first from the Order of Saint Augustine, and the second (after his immediate predecessor Pope Francis) from the Americas. Prevost was born in Chicago and raised in the neighboring town of Dolton, Illinois. He became a friar in the Order of Saint Augustine in 1977 and was ordained as a priest in 1982. He earned a Doctor of Canon Law (JCD) degree in 1987 from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. His service includes extensive missionary work in Peru in the 1980s and 1990s, during which he worked as a parish pastor, diocesan official, seminary teacher, and administrator. Elected prior general of the Order of Saint Augustine, he was based in Rome from 2001 to 2013, and traveled extensively as part of this work, including to the order's many provinces and missions around the world. He then returned to Peru as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome, and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. Upon his return to Rome, Prevost was made a cardinal. As a cardinal, Prevost emphasized synodality, missionary dialogue, and engagement with social and technological challenges. He has also addressed issues such as climate change, international migration, church governance, and human rights. Prevost's election in the 2025 conclave was unexpected by observers; he was a dark horse candidate, with Vatican insiders believing the prospect of a pope from the United States to be unrealistic given its status as a superpower. Following the precedent of Pope Leo XIII, who developed modern Catholic social teaching amid the tumult of the Second Industrial Revolution, Prevost chose the papal name Leo XIV—both to echo Leo XIII's concern for workers and fairness, and as a response to the challenges of a new industrial revolution and artificial intelligence. As pope, Leo has consistently opposed armed conflict and nationalism while advocating for the rights of immigrants. He has introduced new warnings about the use of artificial intelligence technology. Leo has affirmed the teachings of his predecessors, including social teachings on the environment, marriage, and sexuality. He has consistently pointed to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council as the "guiding star" of the church.