After a two-day Conclave at the Sistine Chapel, Cardinal Robert Prevost emerged as Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope and the 266th successor of St. Peter.
“Peace be with you all.” These were the first words of Pope Leo XIV as he made his first appearance on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, less than 10 minutes after Senior Cardinal Deacon Dominique Mamberti announced his election. “I’m giving my blessing so that it may reach you and your families. May peace be with you all,” he added.
Emerging from the Room of Tears to change into his papal cassock before standing on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, Cardinal Robert Prevost, 69, — a member of the Order of St. Augustine — chose the name Pope Leo XIV.
Pope Leo XIV was born on September 14, 1955 in Chicago, Illinois. According to the Vatican Press Office, he earned a diploma in Theology at the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago, and afterwards was sent by the Order to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University.
Before his election, the late Pope Francis appointed Cardinal Prevost as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
According to CNN, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and the late Pope Francis were elected on the conclave’s second day, while Pope John Paul II was elected after a three-day conclave in 1978. The Associated Press reports that the longest conclave that elected Pope Gregory X in 1271 took 1,006 days./ Story by Anne Stephanie Nilo; Photo from Vatican News
