4 Things American Christians Should Know about Pope Leo XIV

Prior to the conclave, Pope Leo was considered neither a conservative nor a liberal but a middle-of-the-road candidate who could draw support from all sides. He was elected on the second day of the conclave, on the fourth overall ballot.

"Christ precedes us. The world needs His light," Pope Leo said during his first address Thursday. "...Help us, too, and help each other to build bridges, with dialogue, with meetings, uniting us all to be one people, always in peace. Thank you, Pope Francis."

He returned to the bridge theme again moments later. 

"We must seek together how to be a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges, dialogue, always open to receive like this square with its open arms, all, all who need our charity, our presence, dialogue, and love."

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As a cardinal, Pope Leo XIV consistently affirmed the Church's stance on controversial social matters. In a 2012 address, he criticized modern culture for encouraging "sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the gospel," such as the "homosexual lifestyle" and "alternative families comprised of same-sex partners and their adopted children." During his time in Peru, he also opposed a plan to introduce gender topics into school curricula, stating, "The promotion of gender ideology is confusing, because it seeks to create genders that don't exist."

Of course, Pope Francis, too, was considered a conservative on gender and sexuality as a cardinal but drifted left on those issues once at the Vatican. 

Students for Life applauded Leo's election, saying he "has consistently opposed abortion, calling it 'a form of murder' and affirming the Church's teaching that life begins at conception." 

National Right to Life said the pro-life movement has enjoyed a strong partnership with the Catholic faithful. 

"St. John Paul II issued the Evangelium Vitae, an encyclical which reaffirmed the universal right to life for all people. Pope Benedict XVI was an advocate of the right to life and followed the footsteps of his predecessor in keeping the right to life at the forefront of Catholic teaching. Pope Francis, like his predecessors, was a strong advocate for the value and dignity of every human life, from conception to natural death. We look forward to Pope Leo XIV continuing the work of his predecessors in his dedication to the right to life and championing the most vulnerable among us."

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Pope Leo is the first pontiff to be active on social media prior to his election. Just weeks ago, he retweeted a post critical of the Trump administration's actions on immigration, particularly its use of an El Salvador prison. The post linked to an article written by Bishop Evelio Menjivar that stated, "More than a few natural-born Americans are saying they do not recognize their country anymore, but many of us from other lands recognize all too well the terror of people being snatched by secret police and disappeared. We left our former countries precisely to get away from it. Yet, too many people are still remaining silent, perhaps out of fear, forgetting that the Holy Spirit gives us the grace of fortitude to boldly speak out for good." 

In February, Pope Leo -- then Cardinal Prevost -- criticized Vice President J.D. Vance in a social media post, writing, "JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others." 

Together, the posts suggest Pope Leo will continue the stance of Pope Francis on immigration and migration. 

On Thursday, Vance and President Trump congratulated the new Pope. 

"Congratulations to Leo XIV, the first American Pope, on his election! I'm sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church," Vance wrote. "May God bless him!"

Trump wrote on Truth Social, "Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope. It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!"

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Pope Leo is the first American-born pontiff, raised in Chicago amid the city's iconic food staples -- deep-dish pizza, Italian beef sandwiches, and Chicago-style hot dogs.

Contrary to social media rumors, though, Pope Leo was a fan of baseball's Chicago White Sox -- and not the Cubs. The Chicago Sun Times uncovered a photo of Leo attending a 2005 White Sox World Series game. 

"He was never, ever a Cubs fan. So I don't know where that came from. He was always a Sox fan," his brother, John Prevost, told WGN.

In the late 1970s, Pope Leo earned a degree in mathematics at Philadelphia's Villanova University -- a school that became a college basketball powerhouse.

"Today, we joyously celebrate the election of His Holiness, Pope Leo XIV, a moment of profound significance for the global Church," the university said in a social media post. "A Villanova alumnus, Pope Leo XIV is the first Pope from the United States and the first Augustinian friar to be elected." 

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