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Source: https://www.osvnews.com/feed/

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<title>What then-Cardinal Prevost told an Illinois parish about his life, Pope Francis, synodality and more</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/what-then-cardinal-prevost-told-an-illinois-parish-about-his-life-pope-francis-synodality-and-more/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=what-then-cardinal-prevost-told-an-illinois-parish-about-his-life-pope-francis-synodality-and-more</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Lauretta Brown]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sun, 11 May 2025 00:38:24 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[U.S. Church]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[National]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Francis]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13036</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(OSV News) — Parishioners of St. Jude Parish in the Chicago suburb of New Lenox, Illinois, may have had a moment of shocked recognition as the first American pope stepped out…
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/what-then-cardinal-prevost-told-an-illinois-parish-about-his-life-pope-francis-synodality-and-more/">What then-Cardinal Prevost told an Illinois parish about his life, Pope Francis, synodality and more</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[(OSV News) — Parishioners of St. Jude Parish in the Chicago suburb of New Lenox, Illinois, may have had a moment of shocked recognition as the first American pope stepped out on the balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square May 8. 
Pope Leo XIV, then-Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, had just visited their Augustinian parish for “An Evening of Reflection” and Mass in August. During the question-and-answer session, he discussed his history with Pope Francis, a look behind the scenes of his job in Rome, and his thoughts on synodality, the media and more. 
Below are some key quotes from that discussion and his homily. They can be viewed in their entirety <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U3yBFdt4QM" title="">here</a>.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On his relationship with Pope Francis</h2>
“I first met Pope Francis when I was prior general and he was an archbishop of Buenos Aires. We had met on several occasions there for different reasons; there were a lot of Augustinians in Argentina.”
“On one of the occasions, the archbishop of Buenos Aires was interested in a specific Augustinian doing a specific work and I, as prior general, said, ‘I understand, Your Eminence, but he’s got to do something else,’ and so I transferred him somewhere else and I was told that he wasn’t happy about that and I said to myself when he became pope, I said, ‘He probably won’t remember me,’ I thought naively, and secondly he’ll never appoint me bishop.”
“He was elected on March 13, 2013, that was my last year as prior general and sort of as a whim — this has never happened in the history of the order — I said to the General Council, let’s write a letter to Pope Francis and see if he will come and celebrate the opening Eucharist for the chapter of the Augustinian order. We’ve been an order since 1244, and the pope has always sent delegates, the pope has never presided. So I write this letter to him, and he said yes and then it was like ‘Oh my God now what do we do? The pope is coming.’ So we organized the opening celebration in St. Augustine’s in Rome.”
“He and I went off to talk a little bit and not only did he remember me, but it’s like (he remembered) footnotes … there was another incident where I intervened sort of in his favor in one of the dicasteries in Rome and he said to me, ‘I’ll never forget what you did,’ and I said, ‘That’s alright Holy Father, you can forget it if you like,’ but he didn’t forget obviously so from that eventually … he named me a bishop in Peru. … Then nine years later he brought me to Rome, so I have known Francis for a long time.”
“He has a profound commitment to justice, charity and mercy and his pastoral sense — which sometimes confuses some people — is so acute that he really tries to live in a profound way what the Gospel says.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Pope Francis’ message of mercy</h2>
Then-Cardinal Prevost recalled a time that he and Pope Francis were “dealing with the unfortunate situation of a case of sexual abuse” and “were just sharing some thoughts on that and he said, ‘Wait here, I want to show you something.’ He went to his room and he brought back a picture of a carving … it was from a Gothic cathedral in France … of Judas after he had taken his own life and Jesus next to him holding the body of Judas in his arms.”
Regarding this image, he said, Pope Francis pondered, “‘Is it possible to think that God’s mercy can indeed reach out to the worst of sinners?’ And that message in Francis’ life … some people get terribly upset (by it). They say, ‘Well, he should speak stronger on this, and he should condemn that.’ Pope Francis says, ‘Everybody, there’s a lot of people who are condemning things already. We don’t need that. We need people, and especially ministers, who can live and express and offer to others the mercy and forgiveness and healing of God.'”
“That’s a big part of who Francis is: Justice in terms of seeking true justice for all people, especially for the downtrodden — reaching out to help the poor and the suffering and the immigrants and those who most need the mercy of God, who most need the church, perhaps — that’s who Francis is. And all the other stuff has to be interpreted and placed in that context because he really believes deeply, and he really struggles to find the best way to express that message of the Gospel.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On Pope Francis ‘rocking the boat’</h2>
“Francis has a very keen mind and a very keen sense of the vision of where he wants to move the church. And he recognizes that any large institution can become, just as any person, … very set in our ways. ‘We always did it that way. We don’t want to change. We’ve been doing it like this forever.’ And one of the risks of that attitude, which is comfortable for us, it’s like we create a safety zone or security zone for ourselves, and that’s wonderful — but one of the risks of that is we miss the presence of the Holy Spirit.”
“There’s so many things in terms of how we understand building up church community that could be new, and so Francis is not afraid to rock the boat a bit, to shake things up and when he does that there are people who are uncomfortable.”
“The Holy Spirit was part in some way, shape or form (of Francis’ election). I wasn’t there, but I truly believe that Pope Francis was elected by that College of Cardinals in 2013 because the church at this time needs Francis. At a different time, we needed Pope Benedict, and at a different time, we needed St. John Paul II, et cetera, et cetera.”
“But the Holy Spirit will never abandon the church. And if we can live placing our trust in that, then we might be shaken up a bit. We might need to ask questions, and there’s a lot of people we can ask questions to. But we continue to walk, placing our trust and our confidence in the Lord, whose Spirit is indeed with us.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On being Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops</h2>
“He (Pope Francis) called me and specifically because he didn’t want someone from the Roman Curia to take on this role. He wanted a missionary. He wanted someone from outside, he wanted someone who would come in with a different perspective and assist him in a very specific ministry.”
“I began this job and am still learning but it’s certainly fascinating as an education. It’s kind of like formation in international affairs of the church as well as sometimes politics.”
“As you’re doing the study of different candidates for any position, you also have to consider the social dimension, obviously, the ecclesial dimension. What is the economic situation of the country? What are these men like? Who will bring the needed gifts to a given diocese? And obviously, not every diocese is the same, so you may have somebody who’s a true saint but to send them to this diocese he may not be a good fit.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the media</h2>
“Media sites, nowadays, we’re all familiar with a lot of them. Some of them are very good, and some of them are not. One of the difficulties that’s out there is the ordinary person who comes along and starts reading doesn’t know which one you can trust. That’s a big problem.”  
“You’ve got to learn to read with a very critical eye or mind, because it’s very easy to distort the truth or to mix the truth with absolute falsehood and to look for ways to do harm.” 
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the Synod on Synodality</h2>
“It really goes back to the early centuries of the church. Pope Francis has, along with others, been looking for a way to help people understand that the church is not Father up here on Sunday with a lot of spectators, but that rather all of us in different ways, and each one according to his or her vocation and ministry and calling, vocation, service — we’re all called to be a part of this church.” 
“It does not take away at all the authority, if you will, or the ministry of those who are called to specific services in the church, such as a bishop or a priest — but it does call the best gifts out of each and every one to bring them together.” 
“There are some places in the church where that’s already been going on, but there’s other places — I still am surprised at this every time I hear it — but where a priest calls the chancery, and he says, ‘I’d like to have an appointment with the bishop,’ and they say, ‘Well you can come in three months,’ and there’s no contact at all (with) the bishop. The people will see the bishop once in a blue moon, maybe at confirmations, but that’s usually the auxiliary.”
“There’s great separation and great hierarchical structure where people feel like well, what do we count for here and how much actual participation do we have here? And so the concept of the synod is really to try and promote a sense of ‘this is all of us together,’ not just one man’s job or the pastor’s job.”
“As we look for ways of being church together, it takes time, the church doesn’t change overnight, but there’s magnificent hope in this experience of bringing people together from around the world, literally, and saying, ‘We want to be a part of what the church is and what the mission of the church is in the world today.'”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the Jubilee of Hope</h2>
“We can live jubilee right here, and we can live hope when in our hearts we recognize that everything does not have to be doom and gloom and the pessimism which sometimes comes over us; it can truly color our vision.”
“Let’s go back to listening to the word of God. Let’s go back to understanding what it means to be authentic community, communion, parish community, where we care about one another, and we recognize as the Lord promised, ‘Where two or three (are) gathered in my name, there I am in, their midst,’ and we say, ‘We have a message, as believing Catholics have a magnificent message.'”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the National Eucharistic Congress</h2>
“I was not there, I watched it on the internet, but it was a magnificent experience.”
“There are dynamic, life-giving experiences that do fill us with hope, and we have to learn to share that message with others — it depends on all of us.” 
“There’s a lot of good things going on, a lot of hope-filled things that each and every one of us can take part in.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On the importance of beautiful liturgy</h2>
“We all need to see Christ among us and Christ transfigured. We all need that special boost that helps us in our faith. … I remember one time for me, it was actually in a celebration, maybe one of the first ones for Christmas at St. Peter’s Basilica, St. John Paul II celebrating, it was in (the) days when he was still in relatively good health and the magnificence both artistically and musically … the experience of celebrating our faith together can truly be, liturgy needs to be beautiful so that will help us, strengthen us in our faith.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">On immigration</h2>
“He (Pope Francis) went to this little community, an island in southern Italy, the town of Lampedusa where all these immigrants continue to come. It’s a huge problem and it’s a problem worldwide, not only in this country. There’s got to be a way both to solve the problem but also to treat people with respect.” 
“Every one of us whether we were born in the United States of America or on the North Pole, we are all given the gift of being created in the image and likeness of God and the day we forget that is the day we forget who we are. We forget who Christ has called us to be.”
Lauretta Brown is culture editor for OSV News. Follow her on X @LaurettaBrown6.The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/what-then-cardinal-prevost-told-an-illinois-parish-about-his-life-pope-francis-synodality-and-more/">What then-Cardinal Prevost told an Illinois parish about his life, Pope Francis, synodality and more</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Who are the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV’s order?</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/who-are-the-augustinians-pope-leo-xivs-order/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=who-are-the-augustinians-pope-leo-xivs-order</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Maria Wiering]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 22:28:47 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[U.S. Church]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Order of St. Augustine]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13030</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In his first greeting as pope May 8, Leo XIV described himself as a "son of St. Augustine."
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/who-are-the-augustinians-pope-leo-xivs-order/">Who are the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV’s order?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[(OSV News) — In Pope Leo XIV’s first greeting after being introduced as pope May 8, he described himself as a “<a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-urbi-at-orbi-blessing-pope-leo-xiv/">son of St. Augustine</a>.”
The <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/first-american-pope-white-sox-fan-villanova-grad-peru-missionary-vatican-leader/">first American pope</a> has spoken in the past with affection about the fifth-century convert, bishop and intellectual powerhouse considered the father of his religious order, the <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/popes-augustinian-brothers-greet-election-with-joyful-disbelief-deep-spiritual-affirmation/">Order of St. Augustine</a>. Although their order was founded more than 800 years after Augustine’s death, the Augustinians draw on his wisdom and holiness to shape their community.
In the early 13th century, loosely organized communities of hermits living in Italy’s Tuscany region sought direction from Pope Innocent IV — known to be an excellent canonist, or church law scholar — to help them adopt a common rule of life to live with greater uniformity.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Inspired in Part by Other New Orders</h2>
They were inspired, in part, by the recent formation of other new religious orders, including the Franciscans in 1209 and the Order of Preachers, also known as the Dominicans, in 1216. Both were mendicant orders, which meant they relied on begging and working for their sustenance, and unlike the long-established Benedictines and other monks, they did not vow stability, meaning they were not bound to a single monastery for life.
Pope Innocent advised the Tuscan hermits to organize under the rule of St. Augustine, a guide for religious life the saint had developed around the year 400. It covered the breadth of religious life, including purpose and basis of common life, prayer,  moderation and self-denial, safeguarding chastity and fraternal correction, and governance and obedience.
Written initially as a letter for a community of religious women in Hippo, the diocese in modern-day Algeria that St. Augustine led, the rule made its way to Europe and influenced St. Benedict, who formed the Benedictines in Italy in 529.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mendicant Model of Religious Life</h2>
The rule of St. Augustine had also informed the Dominicans, but when the Tuscan hermits adopted the rule, they also took the name and spiritual fatherhood of its author. Over time, they transitioned from an eremitical way of life to the mendicant model expressed by other medieval orders, which is why they are known as “friars.” Women’s religious communities also joined the Augustinians, producing saints including St. Clare of Montefalco and St. Rita of Cascia. Male Augustinian saints include St. John of Sahagún, an early Augustinian from Spain, and St. Nicholas of Tolentine, who was the first Augustinian to be canonized after the order’s “grand union” in 1256.
Today the Order of St. Augustine is an international religious community that includes more than 2,800 members in nearly 50 countries, including the United States, where they are organized into three provinces, or geographical areas. Lay men and women also affiliate themselves with the Augustinians and the order’s spirituality and support the order’s work.
Augustinians in the U.S. have a strong reputation for education and founded Villanova University near Philadelphia and Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts, and high schools in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oklahoma, Ontario and Pennsylvania. They also care for several parishes and have missions in Japan and Peru.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">They’re ‘Active Contemplatives’</h2>
Contemporary Augustinians describe themselves as “active contemplatives” with varied ministries who are “called to restlessness” — a nod to St. Augustine’s famous description of himself in his influential autobiography, “Confessions”: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”
The U.S. Augustinians’ vocations website describes this restlessness as “a divine gift” that they “believe … can direct us to God.”
Despite the order’s 800-year history — and its Italian origins — Pope Leo XIV is the <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/10-things-to-know-about-pope-leo-xiv/">first Augustinian</a> to be named a pope.
A <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/chicago-abuzz-with-unbelievable-joy-the-first-american-pope-is-a-hometown-son/">Chicago native</a>, Pope Leo attended an Augustinian high school seminary, since closed, near Holland, Michigan, and then<a href="https://www.osvnews.com/us-catholics-stunned-overjoyed-at-history-making-american-pope-leo-xiv/"> Villanova University</a>, where he majored in math, before <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-xiv-a-biographical-timeline/">entering the Augustinian novitiate</a> in St. Louis in 1977. He professed first vows in 1978 and final vows in 1981. He was ordained a priest the following year.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Missionary Work in Peru</h2>
His ministries as a young priest included missionary work in Peru and seminary formation before he became provincial of his order’s Chicago-based Midwest province, Our Mother of Good Counsel, and then his order’s worldwide leader, a role he held for two, six-year terms.
<a href="https://www.osvnews.com/popes-augustinian-brothers-greet-election-with-joyful-disbelief-deep-spiritual-affirmation/">Augustinians worldwide</a> met the news of an Augustianian bishop with joy. The head of the Midwestern Augustinian province, Prior Provincial Father Anthony B. Pizzo, said May 8 that the community <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/midwest-augustinians-celebrate-in-pope-leo-xiv-a-brother-rooted-in-the-spirit-of-st-augustine/">celebrated</a> the news of Pope Leo’s election and it was “honored that he is one of our own, a brother formed in the restless heart of the Augustinian Order.”
“We see him as a bridge-builder, rooted in the spirit of St. Augustine, walking forward with the whole Church as a companion on the journey,” he said.
After identifying himself as an Augustinian on St. Peter’s loggia May 8, Pope Leo<a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-urbi-at-orbi-blessing-pope-leo-xiv/"> quoted St. Augustine:</a> “For you I am a bishop, with you, I am a Christian.” “In this sense we can all walk together toward that homeland that God has prepared,” he said.
Maria Wiering is senior writer for OSV News.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/who-are-the-augustinians-pope-leo-xivs-order/">Who are the Augustinians, Pope Leo XIV’s order?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>New pope’s Black, Creole roots illuminate rich multiracial history of US</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/new-popes-black-creole-roots-illuminate-rich-multiracial-history-of-us/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-popes-black-creole-roots-illuminate-rich-multiracial-history-of-us</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Gina Christian]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 20:05:43 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[U.S. Church]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Black Catholics]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Creole]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Genealogy]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[New Orleans]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13021</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV's former surname, Prevost, immediately piqued the interest of Jari Honora, a certified genealogist and a family historian for the Historic New Orleans Collection museum.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/new-popes-black-creole-roots-illuminate-rich-multiracial-history-of-us/">New pope’s Black, Creole roots illuminate rich multiracial history of US</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[(OSV News) — A New Orleans genealogist has found that the first U.S.-born pope has Black and Creole roots — and the discovery illuminates the nation’s rich multiracial history, the experience of Black Catholics and the importance of the church’s sacramental records.
<a href="https://jhonora.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" title="">Jari Honora</a>, a certified genealogist and a family historian for the Historic New Orleans Collection museum, told OSV News that Pope Leo XIV’s former surname, Prevost, immediately piqued his interest.
Yet for all his extensive research experience, even Honora was surprised when he discovered that the maternal grandparents of Pope Leo XIV, Joseph Martinez and Louise Baquié, were listed on several census documents as Black or mulatto.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Pope’s Maternal Grandparents</h2>
Their 1887 marriage license names Martinez’s country of birth as Haiti, with birth records showing his city of birth as Santo Domingo (then part of Haiti, and now the capital of the Dominican Republic).
“We have a lot of Prevosts here in New Orleans and in south Louisiana, but that wasn’t the direction I was going in,” Honora said. “I honestly thought that by him (Pope Leo XIV) being a native Chicagoan — so many of the people in that Great Lakes region … who have French surnames, they’re French Canadian, or they come from people who in more recent decades migrated from France. And that’s what I was expecting.”
The expectation “has proven to be true” on the pope’s paternal side, with that lineage hailing from “French and Italian immigrant backgrounds,” he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mother’s Birth Certificate</h2>
But “once you go down a rabbit hole, you don’t stop,” Honora said, and soon he “stumbled across a transcript of the Holy Father’s mother’s birth certificate, as well as her Social Security death index entry.”
Those documents, he said, “both gave her parents’ names as Joseph Martinez” — commonly pronounced in New Orleans with a stress on the first syllable, he explained –“and Louise Baquié.”
While he surmised that “Martinez could come from a lot of places,” Honora said the name Baquié “sounds like it comes from quite close to home. That’s a New Orleans name. And sure enough, the birth certificate gave … the birthplace of the mother as New Orleans.”
Honora said he “just pursued it from there,” and “lo and behold, the pope has deep, deep connections on his mother’s side … to New Orleans.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">From New Orleans to Chicago</h2>
Once the family had moved from New Orleans to Chicago sometime between 1910 and 1912, however, the family began identifying itself as white, as indicated in the 1920 U.S. Census. 
The practice — known as “passant (passer) à blanc,” French for “passing (to pass) for white” — was then a common means of avoiding racial discrimination, as described by Stanford historian Allyson Hobbs in her book “A Chosen Exile.” 
Honora told OSV News the switch in the racial identification of the pope’s family reminded him of <a href="https://library.georgetown.edu/manuscripts/blog/patrick-f-healy-sj-and-his-brothers" title="">the 19th-century Healy family</a>, whose 10 children — several of them later assuming prominent roles in the U.S. Catholic Church — were born of the union between Georgia plantation owner and slaveholder Michael Healy and his common-law wife Eliza, who was of mixed race.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Healy Family’s Education</h2>
Many of the couple’s sons and daughters, considered slaves by birth, were able to pass as white, and were sent by their father to the nation’s North — which had gradually abolished most forms of slavery — for their education. Several entered religious life, most notably Bishop James Augustine Healy of Portland, Maine, the first African American Catholic bishop; Jesuit Father Patrick F. Healy, who in 1873 became the 29th president of Georgetown University; Father Sherwood Healy, rector of the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston; and Eliza Healy, a superior in several convents of the Congregation of Notre Dame.
“All of them, in order to pursue their vocations in America back in the 1840s and ’50s, they had to conceal their mixed race identity. They were born to a formerly enslaved woman and an Irish dad,” said Honora. “And the fact that here, 150, 160-odd years later, our first American pope — his family shares in that story of being of mixed race and then having to conceal that. It’s just eerie. You can’t make it up.”
As a Catholic, Honora said he was “thrilled” by his findings about Pope Leo’s ancestry.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Pope’s Ties to Chicago and New Orleans</h2>
“This (New Orleans) is such a Catholic city,” he said. “The fact that we sort of share this distinction … with the Archdiocese of Chicago as being home to the first American pope is just incredible.”
Honora has shared his research with both the Chicago and New Orleans archdioceses, and plans in the near future to develop an exhibit with the latter’s archives “showcasing the wonderful sacramental sources we have on the Holy Father’s ancestry.”
Those sacramental records — marking baptisms, confirmations, marriages and funerals — are crucial, Honora said.
“We’re so fortunate that we have sacramental records here in this archdiocese for whites, free people of color and the enslaved that go back to 1718,” he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Records Are ‘Sacred Volumes’</h2>
Honora called such records “sacred volumes,” where “you can find … some of the poorest, the illiterate, immigrants, as well as the ancestors of millionaires and popes and kings. And they’re all recorded the same in these books, because first and foremost, they’re created by the church to document the reception of the sacraments.”
He pointed to the 1997 circular letter on “<a href="https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_commissions/pcchc/documents/rc_com_pcchc_19970202_archivi-ecclesiastici_en.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener" title="">The Pastoral Function of Church Archives,” </a>in which the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Patrimony of the Church described such archives as “places of memory of the Christian community and storehouses of culture for the new evangelization.”
And, he noted, “they serve as these wonderful genealogical sources, and I work with them a lot in our archdiocesan archives, which does a good job of preserving them.”
Honora called for expanding resources to digitize diocesan records, adding that “some of the larger archdioceses” — among them, Boston, Cincinnati and Philadelphia — “have really made progress” in doing so.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">History of Black Catholics</h2>
He also hopes his discovery about the pope’s roots will bring “greater attention” to the history of the nation’s Black Catholics, and in particular to the canonization cause of New Orleans’ hometowner Henriette Delille, a free woman of color who founded the Sisters of the Holy Family in 1842. She was declared “Venerable” by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010.
“Her ancestry is exactly the same as the Holy Father’s,” said Honora.
He quipped that his passion for his work and his faith make him “probably one of the few people, when the reading of the day is the genealogy of Christ, whose mind doesn’t just start to wander.”
Those scriptural family trees “help us to know that even Our Lord was situated in a very real historical and familial context — to be of the house of David, to be the son of Joseph; this meant something,” said Honora. “These are not just sort of additional references that we find in the Gospels. This linked him to the Old Testament and to his Jewish roots.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘We Belong to a Universal Church’</h2>
And, said Honora, “We all find ourselves in that position. We all have bonds to our biological families, our spiritual family, like our godparents and our confirmation sponsors, the people who stand witness at our weddings and that sort of thing. … It just speaks to the fact that we belong to a universal church, one that is for everyone and can be embraced by anyone.”
Speaking of welcome, Honora said, “We’re definitely hoping that when Pope Leo begins his papal visits, including North America, New Orleans has to be on his itinerary. It has to be.”
The menu and the music will be on order for the pope, he added.
“We promise that we’ll have good gumbo and a nice <a href="https://secondlines.com/about/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" title="">second line</a> for him,” said Honora, referring to a lively street parade tradition led by a brass band.
Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. Follow her on X @GinaJesseReina.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/new-popes-black-creole-roots-illuminate-rich-multiracial-history-of-us/">New pope’s Black, Creole roots illuminate rich multiracial history of US</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Pope Leo leaves Vatican to visit Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-leaves-vatican-to-visit-shrine-of-our-lady-of-good-counsel/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pope-leo-leaves-vatican-to-visit-shrine-of-our-lady-of-good-counsel</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Cindy Wooden]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 19:28:15 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13014</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Less than 48 hours after being elected, Pope Leo XIV traveled 40 miles southeast from the Vatican to pray at a Marian shrine cared for by his Augustinian confreres.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-leaves-vatican-to-visit-shrine-of-our-lady-of-good-counsel/">Pope Leo leaves Vatican to visit Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Less than 48 hours after being elected, Pope Leo XIV got in the front seat of a minivan and traveled 40 miles southeast from the Vatican to pray at a Marian shrine cared for by his Augustinian confreres.
And on his way back to the Vatican May 10, he went to Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major, stopping to pray at the tomb of Pope Francis and before the icon of Mary “Salus Populi Romani” (health of the Roman people).
The Vatican press office said he arrived at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Genazzano just after 4 p.m. local time. The shrine is famous for a small fresco of Mary holding the infant Jesus.
A description on a website of Catholic shrines says, “The Christ Child nestles close to his mother. Mary supports Jesus with her left arm. She bends her head toward him, and their cheeks touch tenderly.”
The ancient image is “dear to the order” of Augustinians and was beloved by Pope Leo XIII, whom the new pope is named after, the press office said.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13020" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1415-POPE-GENAZZANO-MARY-MAJOR-1797008-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Pope Leo XIV prays at the tomb of Pope Francis in Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major May 10, 2025. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)</figcaption></figure>
Several hundred people cheered the pope’s arrival at the shrine, and he greeted many of them before going into the shrine to greet the friars. “He stopped in prayer in front of the altar and then in front of the image of the Virgin where he and those present recited the prayer of St. John Paul II to Our Lady of Good Counsel.” (St. John Paul had visited the shrine in April 1993.)
The prayer assures Mary that the faithful turn to her with “their hopes and sorrows, their desires and needs, their many tears shed and their yearning for a better future. Turn, O Mother, your gaze upon this people, accept their generous intentions, accompany them on their journey toward a future of justice, solidarity and peace.”
Pope Leo told those gathered at the shrine, “I wanted so much to come here in these first days of the new ministry that the church has given me” to seek Mary’s help “to carry out this mission as Successor of Peter.”
The spoke of his “trust in the Mother of Good Counsel,” who has been a companion of “light, wisdom.”
Before leaving the town, he told the people that the shrine and the Marian image are “a great gift” that carries with it a responsibility. “Just as our Mother never abandons her children, you must remain faithful to her.”
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13024" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-17969991-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Pope Leo XIV brings flowers to set under a Marian fresco in the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Genazzano, Italy, southeast of Rome, May 10, 2025. The shrine, with a famous image of Mary, is run by the pope’s Augustinian confreres. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13017" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T1400-POPE-GENAZZANO-1796997-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Pope Leo XIV prays before the tomb of Blessed Stefano Bellesini in the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Council in Genazzano, Italy, May 10, 2025. Blessed Bellesini was an Augustinian friar, like the pope, and pastor of the shrine parish; he died in 1840. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)</figcaption></figure>
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-leaves-vatican-to-visit-shrine-of-our-lady-of-good-counsel/">Pope Leo leaves Vatican to visit Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>2012-2025: Pope Leo on the need for the church to be open, welcoming</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/2012-2025-pope-leo-on-the-need-for-the-church-to-be-open-welcoming/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2012-2025-pope-leo-on-the-need-for-the-church-to-be-open-welcoming</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Cindy Wooden]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 19:15:52 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[New Evangelization]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13009</guid>
<description><![CDATA["Doctrine has not changed," then-Cardinal Prevost said. "But we are looking to be more welcoming and more open and to say all people are welcome in the church."
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/2012-2025-pope-leo-on-the-need-for-the-church-to-be-open-welcoming/">2012-2025: Pope Leo on the need for the church to be open, welcoming</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Shortly after the election of Pope Leo XIV, several news outlets reported on his speech at the 2012 Synod of Bishops on the new evangelization and his criticism of television’s positive portrayal of “anti-Christian” lifestyles.
Catholic News Service had reported on his synod speech and spoke to him the day after the synod ended. But CNS also asked him in 2023, when he became a cardinal, if his perspective had changed, particularly given Pope Francis’ outreach and welcome to LGBTQ Catholics.
He had told the synod that portrayals of the modern family on television and in films present a huge challenge to the Catholic Church. “Note, for example, how alternative families comprised of homosexual partners and their adopted children are so benignly and sympathetically portrayed on television programs and in cinema,” he told synod members.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mass Media and Lifestyles</h2>
“The sympathy for anti-Christian lifestyle choices that the mass media fosters is so brilliantly and artfully engrained in the viewing public that when people hear the Christian message, it often inevitably seems ideological and emotionally cruel by contrast to the ostensible humaneness of the anti-Christian perspective,” he had said.
In September 2023, when CNS asked the new Cardinal Prevost about his earlier remarks, he said, “I would say there’s been a development in the sense of the need for the church to open and to be welcoming.”
“On that level, I think Pope Francis has made it very clear that he doesn’t want people to be excluded simply on the basis of choices that they make, whether it be lifestyle, work, the way they dress or whatever,” he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">More Welcoming</h2>
“Doctrine has not changed,” the cardinal said. “But we are looking to be more welcoming and more open and to say all people are welcome in the church.”
In the 2012 interview, Father Prevost said he did not believe encouraging Catholics to turn away from mass media and social networks was the answer to lessening media influence on the growing acceptance of “anti-Christian lifestyle choices.”
The solution is to “teach people to become critical thinkers,” he said. They need to read or hear something and “be able to discern, if you will, to understand that underlying the message that’s being communicated is a very different message, or a very subtle message that has severe consequences for the future of society.”
St. Augustine and the other early church theologians were successful preachers in part because they understood how to communicate to the people of their day, and the Catholic Church must do the same today, he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘Relationship With Jesus Christ’</h2>
But the key is not slick church media, Father Prevost said, but inviting people “into an experience where they can rediscover what it means to have faith, what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ, what it means to recognize that God is indeed a part of our lives.”
“St Augustine would say that God is closer to us than we are to ourselves. But the reality in society today is that people have become alienated from the God who does dwell within us,” he said, “so to help people rediscover the presence of God, to rediscover the meaning of a relationship with Jesus Christ, is a big challenge, but I think that’s what the starting point is.”
After the Second Vatican Council, and particularly with the pontificate of Benedict XVI, he said, Catholics started to rediscover the relevance of the early church theologians, including St. Augustine.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Early Centuries of Christianity</h2>
In the early centuries of Christianity, like today, people tended to look at “what we call the secular world for all the answers” but discovered “that all the answers are not there, and that people are really looking for something else, and that the searching for meaning in life, ultimately, the searching for explanations, for answers, for understanding life and death, for understanding who we are as human beings and what our life is all about, that the fathers (of the church) do indeed have a great deal to say to us.”
The “Confessions” of St. Augustine “continues to be one of the widest read books in the history of the world,” he said, and that is “precisely because of Augustine’s insight into human experience.”
“He does a magnificent job of communicating both his own experience and what he lived and how that experience can indeed be a window, if you will, an opening to discovering a personal experience of God in human life,” Father Prevost said. “Human experience, he says, is precisely where you can find God.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘Solidarity With Other People’</h2>
But St. Augustine also insisted that finding God “leads you into solidarity with other people,” which, Father Prevost said, “is perhaps a piece of the experience that is missing nowadays.”
“So often today, in the highly individualistic society that people are growing up in, people think that ‘my’ experience is the criteria — Am I happy or am I not happy?” he said. But “Augustine’s experience says that, well, that isn’t enough, and maybe what you’re calling happiness isn’t authentic happiness, because you’re going to lose that too.”
For St. Augustine, he said, “an authentic experience of happiness has to include other people, and has to include being concerned about other people, and those are elements that express, I think, a very important part of the Gospel message. … If you love God, then you also need to be showing that by loving your neighbor, and the two go hand in hand.”The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/2012-2025-pope-leo-on-the-need-for-the-church-to-be-open-welcoming/">2012-2025: Pope Leo on the need for the church to be open, welcoming</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>In boots during floods, in vestments at Mass: Peruvians claim Leo XIV as a local</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/in-boots-during-floods-in-vestments-at-mass-peruvians-claim-leo-xiv-as-a-local/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=in-boots-during-floods-in-vestments-at-mass-peruvians-claim-leo-xiv-as-a-local</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Ines San Martin]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 16:04:21 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[South America]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Peru]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=13002</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Between 2015 and 2023, then-Bishop Robert F. Prevost shepherded the Diocese of Chiclayo through some of its most difficult times.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/in-boots-during-floods-in-vestments-at-mass-peruvians-claim-leo-xiv-as-a-local/">In boots during floods, in vestments at Mass: Peruvians claim Leo XIV as a local</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[ROME (OSV News) — In a country where over 90% of the population identifies as Christian — and nearly three-quarters as Catholic — the election of a new pope is more than a Vatican affair. It’s personal. 
On May 8, when white smoke rose over St. Peter’s Square, signaling the election of Leo XIV, Peru seemed to hold its breath. Schools went silent. Restaurants turned up their televisions. Taxi drivers, hairdressers and shopkeepers paused mid-conversation.
And then, as the name of Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost, a former bishop of a dusty northern diocese of a country called “Poland of South America” because of its Catholicism and a naturalized Peruvian citizen, rang out, the country erupted.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘Like a World Cup Goal’</h2>
“We screamed,” said Aldo Llanos, a professor of philosophy and anthropology in the University of Piura. “It was like a World Cup goal.”
During his <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-urbi-at-orbi-blessing-pope-leo-xiv/">first address as pontiff</a>, Leo XIV — formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost — paused to greet “my dear Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, where a faithful people have accompanied their bishop, shared their faith and has given so much, so much to continue to be a faithful Church of Jesus Christ.”
That “faithful people” includes Llanos, who recalled meeting then-Bishop Prevost in the course of his work with Opus Dei. 
“In Chiclayo, Opus Dei runs programs for family and youth formation. Bishop Prevost knew us, trusted us. When he left, during an informal meeting we had with him, he told us that he had never met people who worked so hard — and who were so obedient to their bishop.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A Shepherd in the Storm</h2>
Between 2015 and 2023, then-Bishop Prevost shepherded the Diocese of Chiclayo through some of its most difficult times. Most notably, he was at the forefront of the church’s response to the catastrophic 2017 El Niño Costero, which brought record flooding, destroyed homes and cut off entire communities from vital resources.
“Bishop Prevost was never the kind of bishop who gave orders from behind a desk,” said Janinna Sesa Córdova, who led Caritas Chiclayo from 2014 to 2024. “He was the face of Christ, the one who went out into the mud to help his people.”
When the La Leche River overflowed, cutting off roads and displacing entire neighborhoods, the future pope mobilized the church. “He always made sure the church stood on its feet,” Sesa said. “He coordinated with local businesses for donations, and with the help of civilian volunteers and the armed forces, we were able to airlift aid into isolated areas.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">An Indelible Mark</h2>
His legacy in Lambayeque, the region encompassing Chiclayo, was further sealed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Amid the oxygen shortages that cost countless lives across Peru, Bishop Prevost spearheaded one of the region’s most important charitable initiatives: the Oxygen of Hope campaign.
“There was no oxygen. Families were dying,” Sesa recalled. “Thanks to Msgr. Prevost, we were able to purchase two medicinal oxygen plants and provide free care to hundreds of families. His human sensitivity, especially in moments of crisis, won him the heart of every Chiclayano.”
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13006" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250509T1100-NEW-POPE-LEO-XIV-PERU-REAX-1796937-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People hold newspapers in Chiclayo, Peru, May 9, 2025, reporting on the election of Pope Leo XIV, who is a dual U.S.-Peruvian citizen. As an Augustinian priest, then-Father Robert Prevost spent many years as a missionary in Peru. (OSV News photo/Sebastian Castaneda, Reuters)</figcaption></figure>
He was a hands-on bishop, ready to “come out in boots and a poncho,” Llanos said,while  “when it was time for Mass, he was impeccably vested — a symbol of his ecclesial balance and reverence.”
The fact that as the country was locking down, he walked across the city carrying the Blessed Sacrament, much like Pope Francis had done in St. Peter’s Square during that historic blessing to the world in March 2020, made it clear that all his charitable endeavors were rooted in Christ, she said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Steady Hands, Balanced Heart</h2>
Unlike more confrontational church figures, Leo XIV built a reputation as a calm, balanced and deeply pastoral leader. “He is not one for public clashes or flashy gestures,” said Llanos. “If he had a hard truth to share, or a correction to make, he did it in private.”
According to the anthropologist — in a region infested by corruption, illegal mining and organized crime — “we know” of several harsh letters in which he chastised the locals.
His ability to navigate conflicting political and ecclesial positions with diplomacy led to him being appointed second vice president of Peru’s bishops’ conference in 2018 and later his appointment to Rome as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops.
“I don’t know if he will maintain the same style, but opposite to some more confrontational bishops, always ready to give a statement to a camera or publicly denounce something, he would make his criticism known through social media, as he did with (Vice President) JD Vance on migration, or with (President Donald) Trump tariffs,” Llanos said. “But beyond that, he has a very delicate way with people, and if he has to correct someone, he will do so in private.
Though his social convictions were clear — rejecting gender ideology and the redefinition of marriage — he avoided extremes. 
“He’ll always find a way to make his point,” said Llanos, “but without condemning anyone on camera. That’s what makes him so effective.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A Peruvian Pope in Spirit</h2>
“Had he stayed in his native country, I think his sense of the church would’ve been very different,” Llanos reflected. “But he came to Peru in 1985 — a country in crisis — and was changed by it. That experience left a mark.”
Now, as pope, Leo XIV embodies the Peruvian church: fervently Catholic, socially engaged and close to the people. And when he returns to Peru, Llanos said, it will be “apotheotic” — overwhelming, jubilant, unforgettable.
“He has left an indelible mark on the hearts of Chiclayo,” Sesa, who worked in Caritas, added. “Because he was always there — in the floods, the pandemic, the celebrations, and the sorrows. A bishop of the people. A true shepherd.”
Ines San Martin writes for OSV News from Rome. She is the vice president of communications for the Pontifical Mission Societies USA.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/in-boots-during-floods-in-vestments-at-mass-peruvians-claim-leo-xiv-as-a-local/">In boots during floods, in vestments at Mass: Peruvians claim Leo XIV as a local</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Pope Leo: A pope is nothing more than a humble servant</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-a-pope-is-nothing-more-than-a-humble-servant/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pope-leo-a-pope-is-nothing-more-than-a-humble-servant</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Carol Glatz]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 15:08:52 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Cardinals]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Pope Leo XIV]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=12997</guid>
<description><![CDATA["The true grandeur of the church ... is alive in the rich variety of her members in union with her one head, Christ," Pope Leo said.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-a-pope-is-nothing-more-than-a-humble-servant/">Pope Leo: A pope is nothing more than a humble servant</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Catholic community is alive, beautiful and strong, and it is up to its pastors to protect and nourish the faithful and to help bring God’s hope to the whole world, Pope Leo XIV said.
For that reason, the pope invited the cardinals “to renew together today our complete commitment to the path that the universal church has now followed for decades in the wake of the Second Vatican Council,” and that “Pope Francis masterfully and concretely set it forth in the apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium” (“The Joy of the Gospel”), he said May 10, in <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals/" title="">his first formal speech</a> to the College of Cardinals.
He also said that he chose his name in homage to Pope Leo XIII, recognizing the need to renew Catholic social teaching to face today’s new industrial revolution and the developments of artificial intelligence “that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor.”
The pope, who was <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/first-american-elected-pope-cardinal-prevost-takes-name-leo-xiv/" title="">elected</a> in a conclave of 133 cardinal electors on the fourth ballot May 8, met with members of the college, including non-electors, in the New Synod Hall at the Vatican.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘Short Talk With Some Reflections’</h2>
Pope Leo told the cardinals that after his “short talk with some reflections,” which the Vatican press office published, they would have “a sort of dialogue,” which many of them had asked for, “to hear what advice, suggestions, proposals, concrete things, which have already been discussed in the days leading up to the conclave.” Those discussions in the closed-door meeting were not published.
In the text that was released, the pope said the events of the past three weeks, beginning with Pope Francis’ final days, his death and funeral, have allowed them “to see the beauty and feel the strength of this immense community, which with such affection and devotion has greeted and mourned its shepherd, accompanying him with faith and prayer at the time of his final encounter with the Lord.”
“We have seen the true grandeur of the church, which is alive in the rich variety of her members in union with her one head, Christ,” Pope Leo said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">‘Entrusted to Us to Protect’</h2>
The Catholic Church is “the womb from which we were born and at the same time the flock, the field entrusted to us to protect and cultivate, to nourish with the sacraments of salvation and to make fruitful by our sowing the seed of the Word, so that, steadfast in one accord and enthusiastic in mission, she may press forward, like the Israelites in the desert, in the shadow of the cloud and in the light of God’s fire,” he said.
Because of that, the pope asked the cardinals to renew together their “complete commitment” to the church’s post-Vatican II journey, which was detailed in Pope Francis’ 2013 apostolic exhortation on the proclamation of the Gospel in today’s world.
“I would like to highlight several fundamental points” from the document, he said: “the return to the primacy of Christ in proclamation; the missionary conversion of the entire Christian community; growth in collegiality and synodality; attention to the ‘sensus fidei’ (the people of God’s sense of the faith), especially in its most authentic and inclusive forms, such as popular piety; loving care for the least and the rejected; courageous and trusting dialogue with the contemporary world in its various components and realities.”
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Pope Leo XIII and ‘Rerum Novarum’</h2>
“Sensing myself called to continue in this same path, I chose to take the name Leo XIV” for several reasons, he said, but mainly because Pope Leo XIII, “in his historic encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’ addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution.”
Today, the church continues to offer “everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor,” he added.
Pope Leo XIV, the first pope from the United States, said that, “beginning with St. Peter and up to myself, his unworthy successor, the pope has been a humble servant of God and of his brothers and sisters, and nothing more than this.”
Many popes, and most recently Pope Francis, demonstrated this with his “complete dedication to service and to sober simplicity of life, his abandonment to God throughout his ministry and his serene trust at the moment of his return to the Father’s house,” he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A ‘Precious Legacy’</h2>
“Let us take up this precious legacy and continue on the journey, inspired by the same hope that is born of faith,” he said, reminding the cardinals that it is “the risen Lord, present among us, who protects and guides the church, and continues to fill her with hope.”
“It is up to us to be docile listeners to his voice and faithful ministers of his plan of salvation, mindful that God loves to communicate himself, not in the roar of thunder and earthquakes, but in the ‘whisper of a gentle breeze’ or, as some translate it, in a ‘sound of sheer silence,'” he said.
“It is this essential and important encounter to which we must guide and accompany all the holy people of God entrusted to our care,” he said.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cardinals’ Presence a ‘Great Comfort’</h2>
Thanking the cardinals for their role as the pope’s closest collaborators, he said their presence has proven to be “a great comfort to me in accepting a yoke clearly far beyond my own limited powers, as it would be for any of us.”
God, too, “will not leave me alone in bearing its responsibility,” he said, and he knew he would also be able to count on the closeness of “so many of our brothers and sisters throughout the world who believe in God, love the church and support the vicar of Christ by their prayers and good works.”
He concluded his remarks by embracing the hope St. Paul VI expressed at the inauguration of his Petrine ministry in 1963 and he invited them to do the same.
St. Paul prayed that hope “pass over the whole world like a great flame of faith and love kindled in all men and women of goodwill. May it shed light on paths of mutual cooperation and bless humanity abundantly, now and always, with the very strength of God, without whose help nothing is valid, nothing is holy,” he said, quoting the saint.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/pope-leo-a-pope-is-nothing-more-than-a-humble-servant/">Pope Leo: A pope is nothing more than a humble servant</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>‘Doctrinal clarity, strong governance, thoughtful appointments’ among Weigel’s hopes for new papacy</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/doctrinal-clarity-strong-governance-thoughtful-appointments-among-weigels-hopes-for-new-papacy/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=doctrinal-clarity-strong-governance-thoughtful-appointments-among-weigels-hopes-for-new-papacy</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Paulina Guzik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 14:01:43 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[George Weigel]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papacy]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=12992</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In his first appearance on the balcony, "Pope Leo presented himself very well," demonstrating "he understands the nature of his office."
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/doctrinal-clarity-strong-governance-thoughtful-appointments-among-weigels-hopes-for-new-papacy/">‘Doctrinal clarity, strong governance, thoughtful appointments’ among Weigel’s hopes for new papacy</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[ROME (OSV News) — Only a few days have passed since the election of Pope Leo XIV, but the 266th successor of Peter has already given a hint on the style of his papacy, from his traditional papal vestment on his election day to his first <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-the-first-public-homily-of-pope-leo-xiv/">homily</a> in the Sistine Chapel May 9 and his <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals/">address</a> to the cardinals May 10.
OSV News asked <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/challenges-new-pope-will-face-and-the-qualities-experts-say-hell-need/">George Weigel</a> — the American biographer of the pope from Poland, St. John Paul II — about what the first few days of papacy tell us about Pope Leo XIV, how as an American missionary he can influence the world and about his own hopes for the papacy. Weigel is a distinguished senior fellow at Washington’s Ethics and Public Policy Center.
OSV News: What was your reaction to the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first North American pope? 
Weigel: Since Pope Leo has spent so much of his ministerial life in Latin America, I didn’t instinctively think of him as a “North American pope,” despite his having been born in Chicago. I think there’s been a tendency to overplay this national business in the first days of the pontificate. It’s an interesting novelty that we now have a pope born in the United States, but what it really demonstrates is that national origin is of no consequence in the search for a successor of Peter in the 21st century.
OSV News: What does the first homily and appearance at Mass and at the balcony tell us what kind of papacy we have ahead? 
Weigel: I thought Pope Leo presented himself very well, and in a way that demonstrated that he understands the nature of his office. He’s not going to be a pope of personal idiosyncrasies, I don’t think.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-12995" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250510T0750-POPE-LEO-CARDINALS-MEETING-1796981-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Pope Leo XIV speaks with the College of Cardinals in the New Synod Hall at the Vatican May 10, 2025, during his first formal address to the college since his election May 8. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)</figcaption></figure>
OSV News: How can Pope Leo XIV influence the United States? What is needed from the pope regarding your country? 
Weigel: What the vital parts of the church in the U.S. will be looking for is what they would be looking for from any pope, irregardless of where he was born: support and affirmation of the new evangelization and its efforts to convert a deeply confused culture; an understanding that the living parts of the church in the U.S. embrace Catholicism in full, not Catholic Lite; and encouragement to continue Catholic work in building a culture of life and resisting the culture of death.
OSV News: How can Pope Leo XIV influence the world as an American and as a missionary?
Weigel: Pope Leo is a very intelligent man, so he must know that the great crisis of our time is the crisis in the very idea of the human person. Are there givens in the human condition, the understanding of which leads to personal happiness and social solidarity — or is everything plastic and malleable, such that we can change what we are and who we are by acts of will? The best service the new pope can do for the world is to teach it, or in some cases remind it, of the biblical view of who we are and where we’re supposed to be going: We are creations, not accidents; and we are destined for glory with God, who is the ultimate reason for our existence.
OSV News: What are your hopes for this papacy? 
Weigel: Clarity of doctrinal and moral teaching, good governance, thoughtful appointments to the episcopacy and the College of Cardinals, encouragement of missionary discipleship, and defense of persecuted Christians, all of which will flow from a bold witness to Christ. As for world politics, the best thing this pope, or any pope, can do is follow the example of John Paul II and summon people to a fearlessness that transcends partisanship and narrow nationalism and that calls aggression and evil for what they are.
Paulina Guzik is international editor.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/doctrinal-clarity-strong-governance-thoughtful-appointments-among-weigels-hopes-for-new-papacy/">‘Doctrinal clarity, strong governance, thoughtful appointments’ among Weigel’s hopes for new papacy</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Full text of Pope Leo XIV’s address to College of Cardinals</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[OSV News]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Sat, 10 May 2025 12:03:22 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Vatican]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=12987</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The cardinals met May 10 to listen to some reflections and then have a general discussion.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals/">Full text of Pope Leo XIV’s address to College of Cardinals</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[(OSV News) — This is the full text of the first address that Pope Leo XIV gave to the College of Cardinals May 10, 2025.
Thank you very much, Your Eminence. Before taking our seats, let us begin with a prayer, asking the Lord to continue to accompany this College, and above all the entire Church with this spirit, with enthusiasm, but also with deep faith. Let us pray together in Latin.
Pater noster… Ave Maria…
In the first part of this meeting, there will be a short talk with some reflections that I would like to share with you. But then there will be a second part, a bit like the opportunity that many of you had asked for: a sort of dialogue with the College of Cardinals to hear what advice, suggestions, proposals, concrete things, which have already been discussed in the days leading up to the Conclave.
Dear Brother Cardinals,
I greet all of you with gratitude for this meeting and for the days that preceded it. Days that were sad because of the loss of the Holy Father Pope Francis and demanding due to the responsibilities we confronted together, yet at the same time, in accordance with the promise Jesus himself made to us, days rich in grace and consolation in the Spirit (cf. Jn 14:25-27).
You, dear Cardinals, are the closest collaborators of the Pope. This has proved a great comfort to me in accepting a yoke clearly far beyond my own limited powers, as it would be for any of us. Your presence reminds me that the Lord, who has entrusted me with this mission, will not leave me alone in bearing its responsibility. I know, before all else, that I can always count on his help, the help of the Lord, and through his grace and providence, on your closeness and that of so many of our brothers and sisters throughout the world who believe in God, love the Church and support the Vicar of Christ by their prayers and good works.
I thank the Dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re – who deserves applause, at least once, if not more – whose wisdom, the fruit of a long life and many years of faithful service to the Apostolic See, has helped us greatly during this time. I thank the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell – I believe he is present today – for the important and demanding work that he has done throughout the period of the Vacant See and for the convocation of the Conclave. My thoughts also go to our brother Cardinals who, for reasons of health, were unable to be present, and I join you in embracing them in communion of affection and prayer.
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At this moment, both sad and joyful, providentially bathed in the light of Easter, I would like all of us to see the passing of our beloved Holy Father Pope Francis and the Conclave as a paschal event, a stage in that long exodus through which the Lord continues to guide us towards the fullness of life. In this perspective, we entrust to the “merciful Father and God of all consolation” (2 Cor 1:3) the soul of the late Pontiff and also the future of the Church.
Beginning with Saint Peter and up to myself, his unworthy Successor, the Pope has been a humble servant of God and of his brothers and sisters, and nothing more than this. It has been clearly seen in the example of so many of my Predecessors, and most recently by Pope Francis himself, with his example of complete dedication to service and to sober simplicity of life, his abandonment to God throughout his ministry and his serene trust at the moment of his return to the Father’s house. Let us take up this precious legacy and continue on the journey, inspired by the same hope that is born of faith.
It is the Risen Lord, present among us, who protects and guides the Church, and continues to fill her with hope through the love “poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom 5:5). It is up to us to be docile listeners to his voice and faithful ministers of his plan of salvation, mindful that God loves to communicate himself, not in the roar of thunder and earthquakes, but in the “whisper of a gentle breeze” (1 Kings 19:12) or, as some translate it, in a “sound of sheer silence.” It is this essential and important encounter to which we must guide and accompany all the holy People of God entrusted to our care.
In these days, we have been able to see the beauty and feel the strength of this immense community, which with such affection and devotion has greeted and mourned its Shepherd, accompanying him with faith and prayer at the time of his final encounter with the Lord. We have seen the true grandeur of the Church, which is alive in the rich variety of her members in union with her one Head, Christ, “the shepherd and guardian” (1 Peter 2:25) of our souls. She is the womb from which we were born and at the same time the flock (cf. Jn 21:15-17), the field (cf. Mk 4:1-20) entrusted to us to protect and cultivate, to nourish with the sacraments of salvation and to make fruitful by our sowing the seed of the Word, so that, steadfast in one accord and enthusiastic in mission, she may press forward, like the Israelites in the desert, in the shadow of the cloud and in the light of God’s fire (cf. Ex 13:21).
In this regard, I would like us to renew together today our complete commitment to the path that the universal Church has now followed for decades in the wake of the Second Vatican Council. Pope Francis masterfully and concretely set it forth in the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, from which I would like to highlight several fundamental points: the return to the primacy of Christ in proclamation (cf. No. 11); the missionary conversion of the entire Christian community (cf. No. 9); growth in collegiality and synodality (cf. No. 33); attention to the sensus fidei (cf. Nos. 119-120), especially in its most authentic and inclusive forms, such as popular piety (cf. No. 123); loving care for the least and the rejected (cf. No. 53); courageous and trusting dialogue with the contemporary world in its various components and realities (cf. No. 84; Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 1-2).
These are evangelical principles that have always inspired and guided the life and activity of God’s Family. In these values, the merciful face of the Father has been revealed and continues to be revealed in his incarnate Son, the ultimate hope of all who sincerely seek truth, justice, peace and fraternity (cf. Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi, 2; Francis, Spes Non Confundit, 3).
Sensing myself called to continue in this same path, I chose to take the name Leo XIV. There are different reasons for this, but mainly because Pope Leo XIII in his historic Encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defence of human dignity, justice and labour.
Dear brothers, I would like to conclude the first part of our meeting by making my own – and proposing to you as well – the hope that Saint Paul VI expressed at the inauguration of his Petrine Ministry in 1963: “May it pass over the whole world like a great flame of faith and love kindled in all men and women of good will. May it shed light on paths of mutual cooperation and bless humanity abundantly, now and always, with the very strength of God, without whose help nothing is valid, nothing is holy” (Message Qui Fausto Die addressed to the entire human family, 22 June 1963).
May these also be our sentiments, to be translated into prayer and commitment, with the Lord’s help. Thank you!The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/full-text-of-pope-leo-xivs-address-to-college-of-cardinals/">Full text of Pope Leo XIV’s address to College of Cardinals</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Washington Roundup: Pope Leo XIV congratulated; Vance criticizes Russia; habeas corpus in crosshairs</title>
<link>https://www.osvnews.com/washington-roundup-pope-leo-xiv-congratulated-vance-criticizes-russia-habeas-corpus-in-crosshairs/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=washington-roundup-pope-leo-xiv-congratulated-vance-criticizes-russia-habeas-corpus-in-crosshairs</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Kate Scanlon]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2025 22:14:55 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[U.S. Church]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Washington, D.C. Beat]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[National]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Papal Transition]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Washington, D.C.]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.osvnews.com/?p=12982</guid>
<description><![CDATA[WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Current and former U.S. presidents and other officials offered congratulations to Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, as he became the first American pope. …
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/washington-roundup-pope-leo-xiv-congratulated-vance-criticizes-russia-habeas-corpus-in-crosshairs/">Washington Roundup: Pope Leo XIV congratulated; Vance criticizes Russia; habeas corpus in crosshairs</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Current and former U.S. presidents and other officials offered congratulations to <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/tag/pope-leo-xiv/">Pope Leo XIV</a>, formerly Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, as he became the first American pope. 
The same week, former President Joe Biden made his first media appearances since leaving the White House.
Vice President JD Vance, a longtime critic of U.S. aid for Ukraine, suggested Russia is “asking for too much” in peace talks, while former Vice President Mike Pence was presented with the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award.
Meanwhile, Stephen Miller, a top White House adviser, said May 9 the Trump administration is “actively looking at” suspending habeas corpus, or an individual’s right to challenge their detention in court, as a means of enforcing its hardline immigration policy. 
— Presidents, other officials celebrate first American pope 
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, as well as former Presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush, were among the U.S. officials to celebrate the first U.S.-born pontiff. 
Read more <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/trump-congratulates-pope-leo-xiv-a-great-honor-for-our-country/">here</a>. 
— Biden rejects reports of cognitive decline in post-White House media blitz 
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-12985" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-1170x780.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-585x390.jpg 585w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-07-25T034056Z_645405041_RC2029A8RRMV_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-BIDEN-263x175.jpg 263w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Then-U.S. President Joe Biden pauses before addressing the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, July 24, 2024, about his decision to drop his Democratic presidential reelection bid. (OSV News photo/Evan Vucci, pool via Reuters)</figcaption></figure>
In his first media appearances since leaving the White House, Biden denied reports of cognitive decline in his final months in office. 
A <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/biden-trump-spar-over-abortion-migrants-in-first-presidential-debate/">disastrous debate performance</a> in June 2024 — during which he seemed confused and spoke with a very faint voice — crystallized longstanding concerns about Biden’s ability to serve another four-year term, polls showed. It ultimately led to his <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/breaking-president-joe-biden-makes-historic-decision-to-end-2024-reelection-bid/">decision to end his own reelection bid</a> — forgoing the possibility to become the first Catholic president to do so — and endorse his running mate, then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris <a href="https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2024/11/06/trump-wins-election-249202">lost the presidential election</a> Nov. 5, returning Trump to the office he lost four years earlier. <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/economic-concerns-likely-factor-in-victory-for-trump-as-catholic-vote-shifts-in-his-favor/">Early exit polls</a> indicated economic concerns ranked among the top issues for voters, and that Catholic voters may have undergone a significant shift to the right since 2020.
A book titled <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/799924/original-sin-by-jake-tapper-and-alex-thompson/">“Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,”</a> by CNN anchor Jake Tapper and Axios correspondent Alex Thompson is scheduled to be published May 20. Biden’s allies are eager to strengthen the former president’s legacy at a time when many in his party want him to withdraw from the political stage, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/08/biden-defend-reputation-operative-00334233">Politico reported</a>.
In an <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/joe-biden-jill-biden-join-view-1st-joint/story?id=121555828">interview on The View</a>, during which Biden was joined by his wife, former first lady Jill Biden, the couple disputed reports of his cognitive decline and a subsequent cover-up by aides. 
“They are wrong. There’s nothing to sustain that,” former President Biden said of the allegations.
In his final days in office, OSV News <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/bidens-catholic-faith-both-key-and-complex-part-of-his-legacy/">examined</a> how Catholicism is an integral albeit complex part of Biden’s legacy, both in his overt public observance of the faith and in areas where his public policy sometimes diverged from church teaching.
— Vance says Russia is ‘asking for too much’ in Ukraine peace negotiations
Vance said May 7 that the Trump administration believes Russia is “asking for too much” during peace negotiations as the Trump administration <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/trump-zelenskyy-meet-face-to-face-in-st-peters-basilica/">seeks</a> to deliver a campaign promise to bring an end to the conflict.
A skeptic of U.S. aid for Ukraine, Vance played a role in the breakdown of <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/analysis-trump-tactics-to-end-war-in-ukraine-create-new-uncertainty-for-building-global-peace/">a tense February Oval Office meeting</a> with Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. But he said at a Munich Leaders Meeting on international security policy in Washington, “Right now, the Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions, in order to end the conflict.”
“We think they’re asking for too much,” Vance, who is Catholic, said.
Asked about Vance’s comments later the same day, Trump said, “It’s possible that’s right.”
“We are getting to a point where some decisions are going to have to be made,” said Trump, who has previously indicated he may have the U.S. walk away from the negotiations if he is not satisfied by their progress.
“I’m not happy about it,” Trump said. “I’m not happy about it.”
Trump, who as a candidate <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/ukraine-catholic-leader-calls-for-world-to-stop-russias-war-as-trump-pushes-peace-terms/">repeatedly said</a> that he would be able to end the war between Russia and Ukraine “in 24 hours” upon taking office, recently reached his <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/trumps-approval-rating-drops-as-he-reaches-100-days-including-among-catholics-polls-show/">100th day</a> in office without having secured a resolution. 
<a href="https://www.osvnews.com/ukraine-catholic-leader-calls-for-world-to-stop-russias-war-as-trump-pushes-peace-terms/">Catholic leaders</a> have long called for an end to the conflict sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
— Trump aide: White House ‘actively looking at’ suspending habeas corpus
Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff for policy, told reporters May 9, “The Constitution is clear, and that, of course, is the supreme law of the land, that the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus can be suspended in time of invasion.”
“So, I would say that’s an option we’re actively looking at,” he said.
The principle, which can be traced to the Magna Carta, the 1215 charter guaranteeing certain civil and political liberties in England, is enshrined in Article I of the U.S. Constitution. Habeas corpus has been suspended in some form a handful of times during wartime since the Constitution was enacted, including during the Civil War and after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. 
Some Trump allies have advocated for the suspension of habeas corpus in the U.S. as a means of facilitating <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/tag/mass-deportation/">mass deportations</a>.
In a February <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/us-bishops-thank-pope-francis-for-support-amid-struggle-on-migration-issues/">letter</a> to the U.S. bishops, Catholics and all people of goodwill, about issues of migration in the U.S. the late <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/tag/pope-francis/">Pope Francis</a> acknowledged “the right of a nation to defend itself and keep communities safe from those who have committed violent or serious crimes while in the country or prior to arrival.” But he urged the defense of “the legitimacy of norms and public policies in the light of the dignity of the person and his or her fundamental rights.”
“This is not a minor issue: an authentic rule of law is verified precisely in the dignified treatment that all people deserve, especially the poorest and most marginalized,” Pope Francis wrote. “The true common good is promoted when society and government, with creativity and strict respect for the rights of all — as I have affirmed on numerous occasions — welcomes, protects, promotes and integrates the most fragile, unprotected and vulnerable. This does not impede the development of a policy that regulates orderly and legal migration. However, this development cannot come about through the privilege of some and the sacrifice of others.”
He then warned, “What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly.”
— Pence receives John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="701" src="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-1024x701.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-12984" srcset="https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-1024x701.jpg 1024w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-300x205.jpg 300w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-768x526.jpg 768w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-1536x1052.jpg 1536w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-2048x1403.jpg 2048w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-1920x1315.jpg 1920w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-1170x801.jpg 1170w, https://www.osvnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-05-05T022642Z_1135979589_RC2DBEA0IKJJ_RTRMADP_3_USA-PROFILE-IN-COURAGE-585x401.jpg 585w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks after receiving the 2025 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston May 4, 2025. Pence was presented the award “for putting his life and career on the line to ensure the constitutional transfer of presidential power on Jan. 6, 2021.” (OSV News photo/Faith Ninivaggi, Reuters)</figcaption></figure>
Former Vice President Pence was presented with the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award on May 4 for his refusal to reject the results of the 2020 election despite pressure from Trump to do so, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum announced. 
Previously Trump’s Trump’s running mate in the 2016 and 2020 elections, Pence broke with the president by rejecting Trump’s unfounded claims of a stolen election and certifying Biden’s victory in the 2020 election despite the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
In comments at a Boston ceremony, Pence acknowledged some differences of opinion with the Democrats in the room, but said, “To forge a future together, we have to find common ground.” 
“I hope in some small way my presence here tonight is a reminder that whatever differences we may have as Americans, the Constitution is the common ground on which we stand. It’s what binds us across time and generations,” Pence said, adding, “It’s what makes us one people.”
During the Capitol riot, Pence rejected the Secret Service’s advice that he leave the Capitol building. He insisted on remaining in place for the ceremonial certification of Biden’s election.
“By God’s grace I did my duty that day to support the peaceful transfer of power under the Constitution of the United States of America,” Pence said, calling Jan. 6, 2021, “a tragic day but it became a triumph of freedom.”
He said, “History will record that our institutions held.” 
The award, named for the nation’s first Catholic president, is presented annually to public servants “for making a courageous decision of conscience,” the late president’s memorial foundation said.
Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.
The post <a href="https://www.osvnews.com/washington-roundup-pope-leo-xiv-congratulated-vance-criticizes-russia-habeas-corpus-in-crosshairs/">Washington Roundup: Pope Leo XIV congratulated; Vance criticizes Russia; habeas corpus in crosshairs</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.osvnews.com">OSV News</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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