What do we know about the new pope?

Chicago native Cardinal Robert Prevost, 69, will take the name of Pope Leo XIV and serve as the Catholic Church’s 267th pope.

Prevost was born in 1955, took vows in the church’s Order of Saint Augustine at the age of 26, and received ordination the following year, according to the College of Cardinals. He received a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics at Villanova University and a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He also received a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome with his thesis on the role of the local prior in the Order of Saint Augustine.

Prevost served in Peru collectively over a decade in a number of church offices, including parish pastor, diocesan official, director of formation, seminary teacher, and judicial vicar. The late Pope Francis appointed Prevost as the apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo in Peru in 2014, where he received the rank of bishop the following year. He served about five years on the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference until Prevost received the rank of cardinal from Francis in 2023.

What are his views on issues? Prevost shared little on his positions, but he’s believed to be closely aligned with Francis’ positions on protecting the environment, caring for the poor, and outreach to migrants, the College of Cardinals reported. Prevost also supported Francis’ decision to allow divorced and civilly remarried Catholics to receive communion, but has won less favor with the LGBT community than Francis, the College of Cardinals added. Prevost does not support ordaining female deacons but has voiced favor for the synodal church model, which promotes decentralization.

How are people responding?

• President Donald Trump congratulated Prevost in a Thursday afternoon statement and described his appointment as an honor for America.

• British commentator Piers Morgan congratulated Prevost on his election as well, describing the new pope as a close confidant to the late Francis and a compromise candidate with a progressive agenda.

• The Calvin Coolidge Project shared Prevost’s 2023 voter registration listing his party affiliation as Republican.

• Former president of the Southern Baptist Convention Bart Barber pointed to the Biblical conflict of choosing apostolic successors for the church soon after the white smoke was spotted from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney.

• Just before the church identified the new pope, conservative commentator Charlie Kirk shared his hope that the new head of the church would usher in a golden age of Christianity.

Dig deeper: Read Bekah McCallum’s more detailed breakdown of how Francis’ successor was chosen.