In a shock choice Thursday, Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected pope, taking the title Leo XIV and making historical past as the primary American to guide the Catholic Church.
Pope Leo, appeared on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica round 70 minutes after white smoke billowed from a chimney atop the Sistine Chapel signifying the 133 cardinal electors had chosen a brand new chief for the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church.
“Peace be with you all,” the brand new pope instructed the cheering crowd.
The alternative of Prevost was introduced by French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti with the Latin phrases “Habemus Papam” (We have a pope) to tens of hundreds of individuals gathered in St. Peter’s Square to listen to the news.
Aged 69 and initially from Chicago, Prevost has spent most of his profession as a missionary in Peru and have become a cardinal solely in 2023. He has given a couple of media interviews and infrequently speaks in public.
Leo turns into the 267th Catholic pope after the demise final month of Pope Francis, who was the primary Latin American pope and had led the Church for 12 years and extensively sought to open the staid establishment as much as the fashionable world.
Francis enacted a spread of reforms and allowed debate on divisive points equivalent to girls’s ordination and higher inclusion of gender minority Catholics.
Ahead of the conclave, some cardinals known as for continuity with Francis’ imaginative and prescient of larger openness and reform, whereas others stated they needed to show again the clock and embrace outdated traditions.
Prevost has attracted curiosity from his friends due to his quiet type and assist for Francis, particularly his dedication to social justice points.
Prevost served as a bishop in Chiclayo, in northwestern Peru, from 2015 to 2023.
Francis introduced him to Rome that yr to go the Vatican workplace accountable for selecting which monks ought to function Catholic bishops throughout the globe, which means he has had a hand in deciding on most of the world’s bishops.
Prevost stated throughout a 2023 Vatican press convention: “Our work is to enlarge the tent and to let everyone know they are welcome inside the Church.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com