Robert Prevost, a cardinal from the United States, has been elected as the new head of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the first US pontiff and takes the name Leo XIV.
In his first speech as pontiff, he said the church should “build bridges” and “welcome everyone”.
Read more
Analysis
New Pope emphasises ‘peace’ in first address
In his first public words, Pope Leo told supporters “peace be with all you”.
He emphasised the theme of peace throughout the address.
“He is clearly setting the tone for his papacy,” Al Jazeera Hoda Abdel-Hamid reported from Vatican City.
“He also had a political tone there, calling for peace everywhere, calling for disarmament, calling for building bridges. So we do get an idea in which direction he will be heading,” she said.
Leo XIV spoke in Spanish
This is a summary of what the new pope has said in Spanish:
To all of you, the people of Rome and Italy, we need to be a church that shows charity always and is especially charitable to those who are suffering.
Today is the day of praying to the Madonna of Pompeii.
Our blessed mother Mary always wants to be close to us, so let us pray for this new mission and peace in the world.
He then performed the Hail Mary prayer.
‘We go forward,’ new pope says
Pope Leo has started his first address since assuming the role of leader of the Catholic Church.
“Evil will not prevail; we are in the hands of God,” he told supporters. “So without fear, united hand in hand with God and among ourselves, we go forward.”
“Thank you, Pope Francis,” he said.
He called for a “missionary church … that builds bridges, is always open to welcome everyone”.
The newly appointed Pope Leo XIV made his first public appearance, standing on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica.
He waved with both hands to cheering supporters below, some waving the United States flag.
Who is Cardinal Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV?
Prevost is a US and Peruvian citizen, who was brought to the Vatican in 2023 by Pope Francis to serve as the powerful head of the office that vets bishop nominations from around the world, widely considered one of the most important jobs in the Catholic Church.
While a native of Chicago, Prevost has lived for years in Peru, first as a missionary and then as an archbishop.
Prevost was also twice elected prior general, or top leader, of the Augustinian religious order, the 13th-century order founded by St Augustine.
Ever since he arrived in Rome, Prevost has kept a low public profile, but he is well known to the men who count.
Significantly, he presided over one of the most consequential reforms Francis made, when he added three women to the voting bloc that decides which bishop nominations to forward to the pope.
● Reports courtesy of Al Jazeera.com
