Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who is the first American to work in Peru after the late Pope Francis, has been elected as the new pope. He was crowned Pope Leo XIV. In Catholicism, Leo means lion in Latin, and we hope that the name’s leadership of strength and courage will shine a light at a time of global turmoil and conflict. A delegation of 133 cardinal electors elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the U.S. as the 267th pope at a conclave held at the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Pope Leo XIV, born in Chicago, U.S.A. in 1955, was ordained a priest in 1982 and is a member of the order of St. Augustineau. He is the first pope to be produced at St. Augustineau. Although he is a U.S. national, he served as a missionary in Peru for 20 years, obtained his citizenship in 2015, and was appointed as the Archbishop of Peru in the same year. Analysts say that even though he is an American, his footsteps, which he took care of at the periphery including the poor, served as a factor for the Pope’s election.
Pope Leo XIV was appointed Bishop of the Holy See by Pope Francis in 2023. He is a close aide to the former pope but has a centrist theological tendency, which is why he is considered to strike a balance between the reformists and conservatives in the church. He is also known to speak Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and French as well as English. Pope Leo XIV will deliver his first blessing message on Wednesday from the balcony of the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican, the day after his election, after jointly holding a Mass with cardinals. He also visited Korea four times in the past.
SAM KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
