Habemus papam — and he’s American!
Cardinal Robert Prevost be the next pope, taking the reins of the Roman Catholic Church after the death of Pope Francis last month.
He has taken the name Pope Leo XIV.
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Cardinal Robert Prevost greets the crowd Thursday.
Cardinal Robert Prevost — who was born in Chicago — is an American missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and leads the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops.
White smoke appeared from the Sistine Chapel chimney on Thursday afternoon, signifying to the world that the College of Cardinals had reached the required two-thirds majority on the new pope.
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White smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel on Thursday, May 8, 2025.AP
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The 133 eligible voting cardinals have been sequestered in the historic chapel for a secretive voting process known as the conclave.
Several names have been called lead contenders ahead of the conclave, but the relatively new pool of cardinals in the running – about 80% in the conclave were appointed since Francis was named in 2013 – has left speculation difficult.
Among the top contenders is Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state under Francis who presided over the conclave.
The 70-year-old is considered far less charismatic than Francis was but has been called a savvy statesman who could be an asset for the Catholic Church’s standing in the world. But some say he is too much a bureaucrat and not enough a pastor – and that the leader of the Catholics should be focused on religion and not diplomacy.
Another leader is Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, a Filipino cardinal who has been outspoken about furthering Francis’ progressive policies.
The 67-year-old’s approach to the public is closer to Francis’ enthusiastic openness, while Catholicism has been on the rise in Southeast Asia and the church has been vocal about trying to continue expanding that reach.
And Fridolin Ambongo, a 65-year-old cardinal from the Democratic Republic of Congo has been pressing the church to expand its reach to corners of the world that have historically gotten less attention – like Africa and Asia.
Ambongo’s appointment would mirror the arrival of Francis – the first non-European church leader since 741 — from one of those corners.
But Ambongo, like most cardinals from Africa, is far more conservative than many of the lead contenders.
The new pope is the 267th in history and will follow Pope Francis, 88, who died April 21 after a lengthy bout with respiratory illness culminating in a stroke and heart failure.
This vote was relatively speedy, though not unprecedented for modern times – with the last three popes all having been selected on the second day of conclave.
© NYP