Vatican: New Pope Leo – the beginning of an era?

You have already started to calculate in Rome. Italy’s most important television station, the RAI, has already proclaimed a new age: the “era Leo XIV.”. The new Pope, the first from the United States, known as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, is still quite young for Vatican: 69.

If you – like the American himself – orientate yourself on the last Pope, who was called Leo, the term of office could last until 2050. Leo XIII’s pontificate. (1810-1903), entered history as a “workers’ pope”, took a quarter of a century. When the Italian came into office, he was almost as old as Prevost now. But of course we are far from being that far.

The first steps are now being considered very much

For the new head of 1.4 billion Catholics, the work started on Friday: in the Sistine chapel, where the cardinals under 80 years of age had determined the man in one of the shortest conclavations in church history as the successor to Francis. After less than 24 hours and four elections, the meeting was over. Now the church superiors celebrated a common fair there, led by the new man in papal white.

Of course, attention is paid to each of his first steps: How does the new appear? It can be read all overall that Leo XIV – you first have to get used to the name – will continue the course of your predecessor. Another one from America, if not from Argentina, but from the USA. Another brother, albeit not by the Jesuits, but by the Augustine. And again someone whose special interest applies to people in the edges of the world and society.

A “Pope of the two worlds”

Born in Chicago, but long away from the USA. Studied in Rome, many years as a missionary and bishop in Peru, most recently as head of the Vatican Authority for all bishops worldwide a kind of HR of the Catholic Church. A world citizen. Or, as the newspaper “La Stampa” calls him, a “Pope of the two worlds”. Francis would certainly have liked that too.

But differences are already recognizable. At the first appearance on the balcony of the St. Peter’s Basilica, the new Pontifex broke. Not because he looks so much younger according to the old, health -stricken and visibly suffering Pope. But because Leo XIV. Unlike the predecessor, who presented himself modestly in 2013, came with a red shoulder spread and stole made of gold brocade.

“No decal by Francis”

The German church historian Hubert Wolf says: “Apparently he wanted to make it clear: I am not a decal from Francis.” After a dinner with the other cardinals, the new head of the church then made a detour to the Palazzo del Sant’Uffizio, where he has lived so far. He had a dark electric SUV driving from VW, not like Francis, who was traveling in the small white Fiat 500. The license plate was the same: SCV 1. SCV stands for Stato della Città Vaticano. The 1 is the Pope.

The Pope with three citizenships – his country of birth, USA, the interim home Peru and now as head of the Vatican – had to give the first autographs before his old accommodation. Laughing when he asked a girl about the day as if he did not have the date of his choice as a Pope in his head.

In his old apartment he also spent the first night in the new office. It is still open whether he will stay there or move the popes into the Apostolic Palace. Most tap Palace. Francis had chosen a more modest stay in the Vatican guest house Santa Marta. Even on Leo’s shoes, attention is now being paid to: at the fair they were black, like the predecessor. Not red like before.

No desired candidate from Trump

However, even more than the matches and differences to Francis will be taken into account how the US Pope behaves as the US president. Donald Trump was one of the very first well -wishers in the evening. On his online language tube Truth Social, he cheered over a “great honor” of having a Pope from the United States for the first time. But it is not certain whether it remains with the cheers: Trump would certainly have been very much better than Prevost.

Everyone noticed that Leo XIV also spoke a few sentences Spanish in his first speech in Italian, but not a single word English. This probably wanted to make it clear to him how much Latin America – the world region, from which millions of immigrants come, who lives in the United States without a residence permit. He has criticized the handling of the Trump government with such migrants. The new Pope is more in line with an ex-president from his birthplace Chicago: Barack Obama.

Criticism of US Vice JD Vance

In February, still as a cardinal, Prevost also opposed Trump-Vice JD Vance. The new Catholic (since 2019) had spent the “Christian concept” that “you love your family, then his next, then his community, then his fellow citizens, and then the rest of the world”. Prevost then shared an opinion contribution on the platform X: “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus does not ask us to graduate from our love for others.”

The fact that Trump posted a picture of himself as a Pope before the conclusion started with artificial intelligence (AI) should not have liked the new Pontifex. Some even expect Leo XIV. The Benedictine Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel says: “Johannes Paul II, the Pope from Poland, has shaken communism. A US Pope, I think, can shake the United States similarly.”

The German Cardinal Reinhard Marx – one of the 133 who were allowed to have a say – considers such comparisons to be absurd. “In my opinion, the United States are not a communist dictatorship. And they won’t be.” As for Leo XIV with Trump, the Archbishop of Munich and Freising said somewhat diplomatically: “As a Pope, he will certainly not want to provoke. It depends on what the president does.”