Pope Leo XIV dwell updates: Cardinal hopes Pope will ‘build a bridge’ with Trump — regardless of previous criticism of administration

Father Rob Hagan had always referred to him as “Bob”.

Now, he said, “referring to him as Pope Leo XIV is just an honour.”

In an interview with The Independent, Fr Hagan said Pope Leo was “incredibly bright” and speaks several languages, but he was also a kind person.

“He has a real approachability and warmth, a twinkle in his eye, he’s really a gift to the church and to the world.”

Read the full interview below:

In his first homily as Pope earlier today, Pope Leo XIV warned against choosing “technology, money, success, power or pleasure” over Christian faith, and said it was one of the reasons it was ever more important to carry out the work of the Church.

Here’s more of what he said in his first Mass:

Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent. Settings where other securities are preferred, like technology, money, success, power, or pleasure.

These are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied.

Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society.

Peru’s president Dina Boluarte says the country is filled with “pride and hope” after Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as Pope.

The Pope had called Peru home for many years and is a citizen of the South American Nation. He served as Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru from 2015 to 2023, after he was appointed to the role by Pope Francis.

“His election fills our nation, which was his home, his mission and his faith, with pride and hope,” Ms Boluarte said.

“May his pontificate be a guide of peace, justice and love for the world.”

In the Sistine Chapel where less than 24 hours earlier he had been elected as Pope, Leo XIV delivered a homily during Holy Mass.

Pope Leo has been accused of failing to properly investigate allegations of child sexual abuse against priests in his churches in Chicago and Peru.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) say they have made the Vatican well aware of the then-Cardinal Robert Prevost’s reported inaction on the allegations, filing an official complaint with Vatican officials against the new Pope in March. They say they have not had a response.

Read that full report here:

One of Pope Leo XIV’s neighbours intuited when he was still a young boy that he would someday become pope.

John Prevost, one of Leo’s brothers, says he thinks it happened when Leo was in first grade.

“One of the neighbourhood ladies across the street said to him, ‘You will be the first American pope,”‘ he said. “How she did that, who knows?”

Pope Leo spent the days leading up to the secretive vote in the Vatican that would make him the first American head of the Catholic Church watching the film Conclave so he knew what to expect, his brother has revealed.

John Prevost, described the moment he found out that his younger sibling had been named the new head of the Catholic Church.

“I was in this moment of disbelief that this cannot be possible because it’s too far from what we thought would happen,” John told NBC from his home in New Lenox, Illinois.

When asked if Pope Leo would have watched the film Conclave for inspiration, John said he had. “So he knew how to behave. So it’s that kind of stuff, because I wanted to take his mind off of it, laugh about something, because this is now an awesome responsibility,” John added.

Read more of what Pope Leo’s siblings said below:

The Vatican says the new Pope will not change the leadership roles within the city-state just yet.

“His Holiness Leo XIV has expressed the desire that the Heads and Members of the Institutions of the Roman Curia, as well as the Secretaries, and the President of the Pontifical Commission for the Vatican City State, continue, provisionally, in their respective roles until further notice,” the Vatican said in a statement.

“The Holy Father wishes, in fact, to reserve a certain time for reflection, prayer and dialogue, before any definitive appointment or confirmation.”

A clue as to how Prevost sees his role as leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics comes in his choice of papal name, Catherine Pepinster writes.

In the Catholic world, a Leo is seen as a reformer pope. And the new Pope could prove no laughing matter for the US president and his team.

Read her full analysis below: