International
This May 8 begins the period of Robert Francis Prevost as Pope Leo XIV, of American and Peruvian origin.
Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost Arrives on The Main Central Loggia Balcony of the St Peter’s Basilica for the First Time, after the cardinals ended the conclave, in the vatican, on May 8, 2025. Robert Francis Prevost Was on Thursday elected the corth pope from the United States, The Vatican Announced. A MODERATE WHO WAS CLOSE TO POPE FRANCIS AND SPENT YEARS AS A MISIONRAY IN PERU, HE BECOMES THE CATHOLIC CHURCH’S 267TH PONTIFF, TAKING THE PAPAL NAME LEO XIV. (Photo by Alberto Pizzoli / AFP)
Robert Francis Prevost, 69, became on Thursday the successor of Pope Francis and the first American and Peruvian pontiff of history with the name of Leo XIV.
The 267th Pontiff of the Catholic Church was born in Chicago but also have the nationality of Peru, where he served as a missionary and archbishop emeritus of Chiclayo.
The so -called “Princes of the Church” needed two days to choose the new Pope, as in 2005, when they chose Benedict XVI, and in 2013, with Francisco.
The Argentine pontiff, who died on April 21 at 88, headed the Church for 12 years with a pontificate reformist focused on the poor and migrants, but was the target of criticism among the most conservative sectors.
His successor will face numerous internal challenges, such as pedophilia in the church, the crisis of vocations and the role of women, and external, such as conflicts, the rise of populist governments and the climatic crisis.
The Prevost name emerged from the largest and most international conclave in the history of the Church, which gathered in the Sistine Chapel to 133 voters’ cardinals from five continents and about 70 countries.
“It is a historical event, which also has geopolitical relevance, said Ferdinando Munzi, a 31 -year -old man resident in Luxembourg who says” fortunate “to live that moment in Rome.
Although the details of the choice will remain secret, unless the new Pope decides otherwise, the only sure thing is that he obtained at least two thirds of the votes to be chosen.