Pope Leo XIV: Who is the new leader of the world's Catholics?

Finally, after much wrangling, the Vatican chose the new leader of the world's Catholics.

Accordingly, before Robert Provost's name was announced as the new pope with the title Leo XIV from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, the crowd gathered in the square enthusiastically shouted: "Viva il papa," meaning long live the pope.

Robert Provost, 69, now sits on the papal throne as the 267th successor of St. Peter and will be known as Pope Leo XIV.

He is the first American to reach this position, although many consider him to be a Latin American cardinal, due to his long career as a missionary in Peru and as a bishop.

Provost was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1955 to parents of Spanish and Franco-Italian descent. He worked as an altar boy as a child and was ordained a priest in 1982. He moved to Peru three years later, but over the years, he returned regularly to the United States, serving both as a priest and as abbot of a monastery in his native country.

He is also a Peruvian citizen and is remembered as a beloved and compassionate figure who worked with the marginalized and sought to build bridges between people. Provost spent ten years of his life serving as a parish priest and also teaching at a seminary in the city of Trujillo in northwestern Peru.

In his first words as pope, Leo XIV spoke with respect and kindness about his predecessor, Francis. “We still hear in our ears the faint but courageous voice of Pope Francis, who blessed us,” he said.

Then, addressing the enthusiastic crowd, he said: “United and hand in hand with God, we will go forward together.”

He also referred to his background in the Augustinian order. At the age of 30, he was sent to Peru as an Augustinian missionary to work on a religious mission. A year after becoming pope, Pope Francis appointed Provost as bishop of Chiclayo, Peru.

Provost is particularly known for his prominent role as head of the Dicastery for Episcopal Conferences in Latin America, the body responsible for selecting and overseeing bishops. He became archbishop in January 2023 and was appointed cardinal by Pope Francis just a few months later.

Considering that 80% of the cardinals who participated in the papal conclave were appointed by Pope Francis himself, the election of someone like Provost, even though he is a new cardinal, was not far-fetched.

What are Pope Leo XIV's views?

He is a figure who will be known as a supporter of Pope Francis's continued path of reforms in the Catholic Church. Provost is said to have views close to Pope Francis on issues such as supporting immigrants, caring for the poor, and protecting the environment.

As a cardinal, he has not hesitated to express his opinions openly to American politicians, including in his criticism of US Vice President J.D. Vance. He retweeted a post on Twitter (formerly X) criticizing the Trump administration’s deportation of a legal U.S. resident to El Salvador. He also shared a piece critical of Vance’s Fox News interview.

One of the posts had a headline from the National Catholic Reporter: J.D. Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.

Although Provost is an American citizen and is well aware of the divisions and divisions within the American Catholic Church, his Latin American background also provides a sense of continuity with Pope Francis (who was originally from Argentina).

The Vatican has named him the second pope from the Americas (after Pope Francis) and the first from the Augustinian order.

During his time in Peru, he, like many other church officials, faced the fallout from sex abuse scandals, but the diocese he oversees has strongly denied any attempt to cover up the events.

Before the conclave, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said that the cardinals had stressed in their meetings before the vote that the church needed a pope with a prophetic spirit who could lead a church that does not withdraw into itself but knows how to step outward and shine a light on a world in despair.

Leo XIV's term as the new leader of the world's Catholics begins at a time when scandals involving the sexual abuse of children by Christian priests have renewed distrust in the church. On the other hand, global crises, such as the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, require greater Vatican intervention. Pope Francis, the late former leader of the world's Catholics, was considered a staunch supporter of the Palestinians, a path that it is hoped Leo XIV will also follow.