As far as the leaders of the Catholic Church may go, it can be argued that not many others have as much leadership and global influence as the late 266 individuals who have held the title over the course of history. While most of them have originated from Italy and the Vatican area, a few originated from Europe and even South America. Now, the Catholic Church has the first pontiff originating from the United States. His name is Robert Prevost, now called Pope Leo XIV. As the world is adjusting to this new leader, it’s time we go back into his past and understand who he is, where he holds his positions globally, and try to understand what kind of leader he will be for the Catholic Church and for the rest of the world moving forward. 

Robert Prevost was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Louis Prevost, a World War II veteran turned school administrator who participated in the D-Day invasion, and Mildred Prevost, a prominent religious figure in Robert’s early life, who was also a librarian. As a child, he went to Catholic school and worked hard as an altar boy during masses. His parents were of French and Peruvian origin. He was raised in a Catholic family. As a child, he and his older brothers attended St. Augustine High School. Following his high school graduation in 1973, he attended Villanova University and majored in math, before graduating in 1977. His Catholic background resulted in him desiring to become a priest.

Prevost began his career as a missionary in Peru in the early 1980s. In Peru, he was responsible for the Territorial Prelature of Chulucanas. He became known for serving marginalized communities and building bridges, occasionally arriving to do work in the priesthood in the United States and the Vatican. Throughout the following decade, he worked as a parish pastor, diocese official, and teacher. Prevost eventually returned to his hometown of Chicago and became the leader of the Augustus Midwest Province in 1999. 

Near the start of the new millennium, Prevost was appointed to the position of Head of the Prior General of the Order of Saint Augustine. He held the most power and authority and established new Catholic and religious orders. He served two terms, lasting six years each, and worked in various roles within the Church in the meantime. Following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI in 2013, Pope Francis was elected. He saw a lot of potential in Robert Prevost, and in 2014, appointed him to the position of Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo, a substitute for the diocese bishop, where he held for the next decade until the subsequent death of Pope Francis, and is choosing and election by the Cardinals during the 2025 conclave resulting in him becoming the first American pope.

Addressing university rectors directly, Pope Leo XIV said, “To you, university rectors, I want to offer encouragement in the mission you have embraced: to be builders of bridges of integration between the Americas and with the Iberian Peninsula, working for ecological, social, and environmental justice.”