The official portrait of Robert Francis Prevost, Pope Leo XIV, released by the Holy See
I STILL have the smiling face of Pope Francis as my cover picture on Facebook, because I’m still missing the man.
Like many Catholics, I prayed for the conclave, although I did not push for Cardinal Luis Antonio “Chito” Tagle—not because I didn’t think he was worthy, but because this campaigning by Filipinos left a bad taste in the mouth, especially on the eve of our own filthy Philippine political elections. It reeked too much of Pinoys wanting to have contacts in higher places, and what bigger ace than to say “kilala ko si Pope,” like it would guarantee a facilitated forgiveness of sins? I even saw, with equal parts amusement and disgust, a video by a Filipina in Rome recording the three Filipino Cardinals—Tagle, Pablo Virgilio David, and Jose Advincula—walking towards the Sistine Chapel, as she exclaimed, “Go, Cardinal Tagle! Bring home the crown!” Miss Universe talaga?!!
Like Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who was an unexpected choice for Pope in 2013, Robert Prevost was a surprise. His name never came up in the many shortlists and betting schemes in the run-up to the conclave. Then suddenly, there he was, wearing the traditional Pope’s garb—notably, the one which Pope Francis had opted not to wear for his first appearance. Prevost is also returning to the official papal residence. Hmmm, I initially thought.
Like many, my first reaction was, uh-oh, an American pope? It was a reasonable sentiment, and one which conclave watchers had already verbalized, citing how having a pope from the (alleged) most powerful country in the world would be both an imbalance of power and a PR nightmare, considering the phalanx of buffoons now running that country. I don’t think I’m being racist nor presumptuous in saying that the word “American” comes with negative connotations now. I myself am not planning to set foot there while Cheeto Fascist is still making a fool of himself.
The pope’s older brother, John Prevost, shows the hometown paper announcing his sibling’s new job. (Photo from the New York Times website)
And then—thank God for reportage, right?—the facts began to surface. There is the lineage of Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost, whose father was of French and Italian descent, and whose mother had Spanish blood; he even has Creole ancestors down the line, and has identified his own family as “immigrant.” (Hello, Cheeto!) There was the adorable interview with Robert’s older brother John, who exclaimed, “It’s Rob!” or something to that effect when his younger brother’s selection was announced. John told CBS news, “I just thought, maybe I’m dreaming, and then it’s a moment of extreme pride, and then eventually, reality sets in, and you think, there goes the rest of his life.” Quite a human thing to say, I thought.
John also told NBC News that the new Pope’s siblings were traveling to Rome for a reunion, to which Robert replied on the phone, when he was informed, “Oh, okay.” In the same interview, John recalls how, instead of role-playing cowboys or policemen as kids, Robert “was aways playing priest,” turning the family’s ironing board into an altar where he would say mass. He remembers warning Rob, “You’re going to end up as Pope someday”—I know, right?!!
As kids, Pope Leo’s older brother John remembers warning the boy, who was always playing priest: ‘You’re going to end up as Pope someday’
Robert entered the minor seminary of the Augustinians in 1973, joined the Augustinian order, and was accepted into Harvard Law School (!), but opted instead to study divinity and canon law. I liked a post, reshared by a Facebook friend, by a Nigerian Catholic priest, Fr. Emmanuel Ihioma, who was shaking his head at how people were in awe of the new pope’s credentials. “You know, it’s funny when people hear that Pope Leo XIV has a math degree, taught physics, and wrote a thesis on monastic leadership; they act like it’s some wild plot twist. The Catholic Church has always been low-key obsessed with education. I mean, did you know nearly every pope since the Renaissance has had a Ph.D? Benedict XVI had five. Cardinals today basically need doctorate-level expertise to even get a seat at the table. Leo XIV isn’t an outlier; he’s following a 2,000-year-old playbook where faith and reason are BFFs…The Church’s duality, defending doctrinal tradition while pioneering intellectual frontiers, is its defining paradox.” I LOVE IT!
After his ordination in 1982, according to the Catholic News Agency (CNA) website, Prevost worked as a missionary in Peru from 1985 to 1998, also serving as parish priest, seminary teacher of canon law, and diocesan official. He was also part of the leadership of Caritas Peru, the Church’s charitable organization.
By all accounts, he immersed himself in the culture, living among the poor communities in Trujillo, learning Spanish, and even reportedly picking up some Quechua, the dialect of an indigenous group. This is aside from speaking English, Italian, French, and Portuguese. A short clip of Prevost in a meeting in Venezuela some years ago, before he became a Cardinal, shows him speaking lovely Spanish, introducing himself as “RoBERto Pre-VOST,” with the accent on the second syllable, typical of Latin American names.
Chiclayo, Peru, celebrates the election of a pope, who is one of their own. (Photo from the BBC website)
His heart is so much in Peru that, according to CNA, even after being elected head of the Augustinian Province of Chicago, which required his return to the US in 1999, and becoming prior general of the Augustinians from 2001 until 2013—he was reelected, being quite popular and respected—he found his way back there. He returned in 2014 and became Bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, in 2015—the same year he also became a Peruvian citizen. Pope Francis trusted him enough to make him a Cardinal in 2023, as well as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops the same year—that’s the influential “department” within the Church that selects new bishops, advising the Pope on who deserves to be “promoted.”
Peru fervently loves the priest they have come to consider one of their own. BBC reported how Prevost calls the Latin American nation “mi segunda patria” (my second home). BBC quoted Peru’s president, Dina Boluarte, describing the new pope as Peruvian “by choice and conviction…God loves Peru.” BBC also quoted Walkiria Garcia, a Peruvian woman who received the sacrament of Confirmation from Prevost when she was 14, whose message to the new pope was simple and telling: “Don’t change.”
That’s why I have likewise resolved to refer to him as Papa León, to emphasize his Latin-ness.
Peru fervently loves the priest they have come to consider one of their own. BBC reported how Prevost calls the Latin American nation ‘mi segunda patria’ (my second home)
I felt my heart truly stir, however, when the camera zoomed in on Papa León on the balcony of St. Peter’s, holding back his tears with much effort. And then, I am sorry (not sorry) to say, the clincher: BBC reported how MAGA spokesmen, probably hoping this pope would hurl the Church back to the Middle Ages, “came to a disappointed conclusion: the first American Pope does not appear to be ‘America first.’”
That actually made my jaw drop. I don’t recall any recent pope favoring their country over others, because he is the Shepherd of the Universal Church, not some geographical patches of the planet keen on putting up walls while appropriating other places. John Paul II didn’t grant favors to Poland, Benedict didn’t prioritize Catholics from Germany; Francis didn’t even have the opportunity to ever return to Argentina after he became Pontiff. If this isn’t telling of how these pea-brains perceive the papacy, as well as their bloated place in the scheme of things, then I don’t know what it is.
Plus, CNA reports, Papa León is the first pontiff to have an X account even before he was elected, and he has used it to clarify his stand. When US Vice President JD Vance said that Christian teachings tell you who to love first (starting with family, with the rest of the world last), he tweeted, “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.” He has reposted news items and quotes against the US government’s policy on immigrants and gun control.
It’s only been weeks since May 8, 2025, when Robert Prevost became Pope Leo XIV, taking a name that augurs well for the future of the Church. A lion is the wise King of the Beasts, so this soft-spoken intellectual, who spoke of peace in his very first words as Pope, seems ready to steadfastly defend his flock in a world fraught with danger. As a Catholic, I am reassured and hopeful. He’s also been to the Philippines a couple of times as an Augustinian missionary, so I’m betting he will make a sentimental journey back to this Catholic bastion in Asia soon. Catholics worldwide are so ready to love him. Habemus spes (that’s “hope” in Latin).
Frank Lesser’s oh-so-true tweet
Let’s end with this funny post by Frank Lesser, a Hollywood comedy writer, most notably for The Colbert Report on The Tonight Show with Stephen Colbert: “America now has both the pope and the antichrist.” I’m putting my money on the smarter, better man.
