A cardinal from Chicago who spent much of his career as a missionary in Peru has become the first pope from the United States.
Robert Prevost celebrated his first Mass as Pope Leo XIV today in Vatican City.
He is the 267th pontiff elected by cardinals on Thursday to lead the Catholic Church.
The new pope was born in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago in 1955 and grew up in south-suburban Dolton.
Springfield Bishop Thomas John Paprocki said while he does not know Leo since the new pope ministered outside the U.S., the appointment brings extra joy to him as a fellow Chicagoan.
Bishop Thomas John Paprocki speaks in praise of Pope Leo at press conference held early on Friday, May 9, 2025
The bishop said he has great hope that the new pope will re-energize the nation’s faith in the same way that another non-Italian pope, John Paul II, did in his native Poland:
Bishop Paprocki said the new pope’s name choice gives insight into the man:
Pope Leo I “The Great” confronting Attila near Mantua, in a scene depicted in the stained glass windows of the Springfield Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception; this scene, Bishop Paprocki maintains, attests to the legacy of the new Pontiff’s chosen Papal name.
The bishop said that although Leo is the first pope from the United States, he is considered an international figure due to spending most of his priesthood as a missionary in Peru.
Patrick Pfingsten also spoke with Bishop Paprocki on Friday morning’s Springfield Morning News about the new pontiff and more; that interview is available below.
