(WDNews) – History was made Tuesday as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the United States was elected the 267th pope, becoming the first American to lead the Roman Catholic Church. He will be known as Pope Leo XIV.
The announcement came after white smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel on the second day of the papal conclave, signaling that the 133 cardinals in attendance had reached the required two-thirds majority to choose the next pope.
Prevost, 69, hails from Chicago, Ill., and has spent much of his life serving the Church around the world. His background includes a decade of missionary work in Trujillo, Peru, followed by nearly a decade as bishop of Chiclayo from 2014 to 2023. Most recently, he served as the head of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Bishops—a key role in shaping global church leadership.
In a past interview with Vatican News, Prevost reflected on his calling: “I still consider myself a missionary. My vocation, like that of every Christian, is to be a missionary, to proclaim the Gospel wherever one is.”
Pope Leo XIV is expected to continue the reform-minded legacy of his predecessor, Pope Francis, while also bringing his own international experience and perspective to the global Church, which serves more than 1.4 billion Catholics.
He is set to make his first public appearance as pope from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
