Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first Mass in the Sistine Chapel on Friday. He was elected less than 24 hours earlier in the same chapel. He prayed that his historic papacy could help the Catholic Church be a beacon illuminating “the dark nights of this world”.
Leo, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost, is the first U.S. pope. He looked serene as he said the Mass in the famous, frescoed chapel. The same cardinals who chose him to be the 267th pontiff and the successor to Pope Francis attended.
He wore relatively simple white and gold vestments. Leo, born in Chicago but a missionary in Peru for two decades, spoke a few words in English. Then he continued his homily in fluent Italian. He painted the spiritual picture of the Church he would like to see under his papacy.
He said, “God has …. entrusted this treasure to me so that, with his help, I may be its faithful administrator for the sake of the entire mystical Body of the Church”.
He added, “He has done so in order that she may be ever more fully a city set on a hill, an ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history and a beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world,” according to the official translation.
The 1.4 billion-member Church was great not because of “the magnificence of her structures or the grandeur of her buildings … but rather through the holiness of her members.”
The cardinals elected Leo, aged 69, at the end of a swift two-day conclave. White smoke billowed from the chapel’s chimney on Thursday evening, signaling the conclusion of the conclave.
Before his election, people largely wrote off U.S. cardinals as papal contenders. They assumed the global Church could not be run by a superpower pope.
He also holds Peruvian citizenship. This means he possesses deep knowledge of both the West and less developed nations.
After the Mass, Leo will have lunch with the cardinals who elected him. Then they will be free to leave the Vatican and return to their homes.
The successor to Pope Francis, who died last month at 88, inherits major challenges. These range from a budget shortfall to divisions. Divisions include whether the Church should be more welcoming towards the LGBT community and divorcees. Also whether it should let women play a greater role in its affairs.
U.S. President Donald Trump quickly congratulated Leo. However, the new pope has a history of criticizing Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s policies. This is according to posts on Robert Prevost’s X account.
The new pope worked for decades in northern Peru. He was first a missionary and later Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. Catholics took to the streets of the small city in northwestern Peru. Church bells rang out to celebrate the election of a man they embrace as one of their own.
His choice of name offers one of the clues to what kind of Church leader Leo will be. Pontiffs often use their name to signal their new papacy’s priorities.
Leo XIII, the last pope with this name, led the Church from 1878-1903. People knew him for his devoted focus on social justice issues. He is often credited with laying the foundation for modern Catholic social teaching.
Prevost became a cardinal only in 2023. He has given few media interviews and is known to have a shy personality.
Francis brought him to Rome two years ago. He put him in charge of the Vatican office that chooses which priests should serve as Catholic bishops across the globe. This means he has had a hand in selecting many of the world’s bishops.
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