Pope Leo XIV: A Bridge of Peace and Renewal
Pope Leo XIV greeted the public for the first time from the main balcony of St. Peter's Basilica.
Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images
Habemus Papam! We have a Pope!
On May 8, 2025, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, O.S.A., was elected the 267th pope of the Roman Catholic Church, taking the name Pope Leo XIV. A former missionary, seminary professor, and bishop in Peru—and more recently, the Vatican’s prefect for bishops—Pope Leo XIV brings a unique combination of pastoral humility, theological formation, and global experience to the role of Supreme Pontiff.
His election is historic. He is the first American-born pope and the first member of the Augustinian order to become pope in over five centuries. But beyond the history-making headlines, it’s the deeper symbolism of the day and his early gestures that offer insight into the kind of leader Pope Leo XIV may be.
A Date Steeped in Meaning
The day of his election, May 8, carries striking significance within both the Church and the world:
- In 1884, Pope Leo XIII—whose name Pope Leo XIV now takes up—had a mystical experience following Mass that led him to write the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel.
- May 8 is also commemorated as Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day), marking the end of World War II in Europe.
- For Pope Leo XIV, the day is also personal. His father, Louis Marius Prevost, was a World War II U.S. Navy veteran.
Taken together, May 8 is a day that has long spoken of spiritual battle, triumph over evil, and the hope of peace—and now, with Pope Leo XIV, it speaks again with fresh relevance.
And through it all, there is something unmistakable: the quiet, steady movement of the Holy Spirit. The convergence of history, personal story, ecclesial legacy, and global need isn’t mere coincidence—it is providential. It is the Spirit guiding the Church, gently and powerfully, toward a new chapter of peace and renewal.
A Pontificate Rooted in Peace and Prayer
From the moment he stepped out onto the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Leo XIV chose not to dazzle, but to pray. He led the world in a Hail Mary and referenced the Supplication to Our Lady of Pompeii, a prayer of deep trust and humility written by Blessed Bartolo Longo. Longo’s story is a reminder that no one is beyond the reach of redemption—something Pope Leo seems to believe not only intellectually, but pastorally.
His first address was marked by a calm and personal appeal to peace—one rooted not in politics, but in Christ. He spoke of the peace of the Risen Lord, a peace that disarms and reconciles, and invited all of us to walk forward without fear. His tone was warm, pastoral, Christ-centered, and deeply human.
The Holy Spirit—who hovered over the waters at the beginning of creation and descended like fire at Pentecost—now seems to stir again through the simplicity of that prayerful beginning. Pope Leo XIV didn’t just mark the start of a pontificate. He helped us recall the foundations of faith: trust, humility, unity, and mission.
The Meaning of His Name
His choice of the name Leo—the first pope to do so since Leo XIII—offers a compelling lens through which to view his priorities. Pope Leo XIII, best known for his encyclical Rerum Novarum, initiated modern Catholic social teaching, drawing attention to the dignity of work, the rights of laborers, and the Church’s responsibility to engage with the social realities of the time.
In that light, Leo XIV’s name may suggest a commitment to:
- Continued social engagement and justice for the vulnerable
- Intellectual and theological renewal rooted in tradition
- A missionary, outward-facing Church that listens, teaches, and builds bridges
It’s also worth noting that Pope Leo XIII was known as a “pastor of peace”—a legacy that Leo XIV seems eager to embrace and extend into a new generation.
A Marian and Augustinian Heart
Leo XIV’s deep Marian devotion, seen in his public reference to the Supplication to Our Lady of Pompeii and his instinct to begin with prayer, flows from his Augustinian spirituality. The motto he chose as bishop—In Illo uno unum (“In the One, we are one”)—draws from St. Augustine’s vision of communion with God and with one another through love.
That sense of unity—both mystical and practical—is already visible in how he speaks of the Church: not as a fortress or institution to be managed, but as a pilgrim people, walking together, hand in hand, under the mercy of God.
And in the figure of Blessed Bartolo Longo—a man once caught in spiritual darkness, now buried at the Marian shrine he built with love—we see the same Spirit of transformation that animated the early Church still at work in our day.
A Pope for This Moment
At a time when the Church continues to navigate division, fatigue, and change, Pope Leo XIV offers a quiet but courageous beginning. He reminds us that peace is possible—not by avoiding conflict or clinging to comfort, but by turning again to Christ, to one another, and to the witness of those who came before us.
In the life of his namesake, in the prayers he offered, in the legacy of his father’s generation, and in the timing of his election, we see threads of something far greater than coincidence. We see the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit—patient, persistent, and powerfully present.
Let us pray for Pope Leo XIV—that he may lead with wisdom, serve with humility, and shepherd the Church into deeper communion with the heart of Christ.
And may we, like him, begin again—under the protection of Mary, filled with the peace of the Risen Lord, and open to the Spirit who still renews the face of the earth.
For a full transcript of Pope Leo XIV's first public papal address, you can visit the official NPR transcript.
