Profile of Pope Leo XIV, the First American-Born Pontiff

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has officially been elected as the new pope, successor of the late Pope Francis. 

The announcement of his election was marked by a white smoke signal seen coming out of the Sistine Chapel's chimney on Thursday, May 8, 2025, local time.

Thomas Kristiatmo, a diocesan priest from the Bandung Diocese, was one of those waiting for the announcement at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City.

Thomas said the crowd began to fill the square in front of the Sistine Chapel as soon as the news of the white smoke signal marking a new pope was spread.

"Everyone hoped to see who it was in person, because there was no prior information before the announcement," Thomas told Tempo, early Friday morning Indonesia time, May 9, 2025.

According to Thomas, the community was busy guessing who would be the newly elected Pope among the hundreds of cardinals participating in the conclave. "They have their "ace," gossiping and all," he said.

The priest, who is currently undergoing a fellowship in Rome, said that St. Peter's Square was still crowded with people after the new pope was announced. "People left with mixed feelings, most are happy, of course," he said.

After the conclave procession, Thomas said the cardinals will return to Casa Santa Marta. Meanwhile, the newly elected Pope will undergo a series of ceremonies. "There are usually a series of liturgical ceremonies and various canonical processes to take power," he said. The ceremonial process can take up to a week after the conclave ritual ends.

Pope Leo XIV Profile

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who had taken the name Pope Leo XIV, is currently 69 years old and hails from Chicago, Illinois. He has had experience as a global priest, spending most of his career as a missionary in South America and bishop in Peru.

Recently, he led an influential Vatican office in the appointment of bishops. His election as the new Pope is expected to follow the late Pope Francis' steps towards reform.

Reported by Vatican News, Pope Leo XIV was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, to parents Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martnez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martin and John Joseph.

Prevost spent his childhood and adolescence with his family. He studied at the Augustinian Fathers' Minor Seminary and continued his studies at Villanova University in Pennsylvania. In 1977, he obtained a degree in Mathematics and also studied Philosophy.

On September 1, 1977, he entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.) in Saint Louis, Our Lady of Good Counsel Chicago Province. He made his first profession on September 2, 1978. Three years later, precisely on August 29, 1981, Robert Francis Prevost made his solemn vows.

Pope Leo XIV studied theology at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. At the age of 27, he was sent by his superiors to Rome to study Canon Law at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum). In Rome, he was ordained as a priest on June 19, 1982, at the Augustinian College of Saint Monica. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became the first Augustinian pontiff.

Istiqomatul Hayati contributed to the writing of this article

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