Pope Leo XIV named 1st American leader of Catholic Church

For the first time in the Catholic Church’s history, cardinals have named an American to be the new pope.
Robert Francis Prevost, 69, received votes from at least 89 of the 133 cardinals in the conclave, a two-thirds majority, to become the new pontiff.
Prevost chose to be known as Pope Leo XIV. In his first words as pope, he told the gathered crowd: “Peace be with you.”
From the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica, history’s first American pope recalled he was an Augustinian priest, but that he was above all a Christian and a bishop, “so we can all walk together.”
The new pope’s name was announced by the top cardinal, who uttered the words “Habemus Papam!” — Latin for “We have a pope!” — from the balcony of St. Peter’s. He spoke first in Italian, then switched to Spanish to talk about the many years he spent as a missionary and then as archbishop of Chiclayo, Peru. Peter’s Basilica, revealing Prevost’s name in Latin as well as his chosen name to the cheers of the crowd gathered at St. Peter’s Square.
The announcement came after white smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel on Thursday shortly after 6:07 p.m. local time or 12:07 p.m. ET, signifying the election of a new pope.
The decision comes slightly more than two weeks since Pope Francis died on April 21, following a 12-year papacy.
Leo XIV was born in Chicago in 1955 to a Spanish mother and an Italian-French father who served in the Second World War.He joined the Order of St. Augustine in September 1977 and was ordained a priest in 1982. He later joined an Augustinian mission in Peru 1985. The late pope, Francis, had appointed Leo XIV in 2023 to serve as the head of the office which vets bishop nominations from around the world, one of the most important jobs in the Catholic Church.Cardinals were sequested and bound to secrecy during a conclave, where they cast at least four votes over the course of two days for the man they wanted to become pope.The man chosen would have had to secure votes from at least 89 of the 133 cardinals participating in the conclave, a two-thirds majority, in order to take on the role.
Until Thursday afternoon’s white smoke, only black smoke had billowed forth from the chimney on Wednesday evening local time and Thursday morning, both to signify no pope had been elected.