What does the first Pope of America mean to the Catholic Church

The white smoke, which started from the Sistine chapel on Thursday, indicated the selection of the new Pope – the first from America.

Thousands of miles in Illinois, the feeling of euphoria received a man previously known as Robert Prevost, who now finds himself in one of the most Auditing and strong positions In the world, at the time of acute turmoil.

“I am satisfied, I was surprised, I was surprised,” said Mark Piper, a diocese in the St. Parancabas Church on the southern side of Chicago. “I did not expect the American Pope.”

“There is definitely a feeling of pride in the fact that he is from Chicago,” said Father Sergio Rumo, the patron of St. Andrew Parish, of the newborn “Shubr” and grew up in the third largest city in America.

“Before people ask,” What are the chances of the American Pope? “The traditional wisdom was reported, that this was a very little possibility.” “A few people call me and say,” Oh, I was wrong! “

Prevost name has been in recent weeks as a possible candidate for success Pope Francis But the betting markets put the possibilities of a man of Chicago with less than 1 percent.

Pope Liu faces the fourteenth, as he will be known, in the rays full of challenges Vatican unstable financial affairs It is called for the protection of children from sexual assault by priests.

It will also have to direct the church through geopolitical turmoil caused by his hometown in the United States under President Donald Trump.

the Vatican For decades, I looked at the United States as an ally in supporting a liberal world order in the search for religious freedom in authoritarian areas. But the inability to predict Trump has disturbed the anxiety in the Holy See.

Cardinate has chosen a leader, although he is ideologically in line with his predecessor in the relatively progressive world, he may face the American president.

“We once needed to have a door speaking for human rights in Russia and China,” said Massimo Vagogioli, a professor of theology at the University of Villanova, where he studied ink. “You now need someone who can speak the truth to the American power.”

He was born in Chicago in 1955, Prevost photographed a profession in the church shortly after leaving school. He studied mathematics in Villanova before he went to join St. Augustine’s order and is appointed as a priest at the age of 26.

He spent his formative years in Peru, where he worked for more than a decade in Trujio’s diocese. Prevost raised the ranks of the local church whose bishops were divided between the leftists, are severely affected by the theology of liberation in Latin America, and kept the bow with close relations with Opus Dei.

As he looks at the moderate influence, Prevost returned to Peru as a bishop from 2015 to 2023. He said in the Spanish language in his first speech on Papa on Thursday, “The loyal people of their bishop accompanied and shared his faith.”

“He chose to be one of us, live between us and to carry in his heart faith, culture and dreams of this nation,” said Dina Polwari, Peruvian president in a televised speech on Thursday.

The Privost caught the attention of Pope Francis, who appointed him as a bishop in 2015 and soon promoted. The Argentine ink summoned him to Rome in 2023 to head the powerful Dicastery for Bishop’s appointments – a job that allowed him to build networks through the global Catholic leadership.

However, he left a prevost surprise in the upper function of the Church – and the 1.4 billion Catholics leader – trying to spectators who are trying to control his basic beliefs and searching for evidence of his leadership style.

His choice of name Liu indicates that Prevost will continue in the gradual vein of his predecessor. Liu XIII, the Pope at the beginning of the twentieth century, was the author of the book ” Revolutionary Encyclopedia’s message, often considered the first step in the gradual acceptance of the Catholic Church of political modernity, and included a Christian defense of workers’ rights.

“He has returned to 1900 and chose Liu XIII,” said Greg Peres, publisher of Acta leaflets in Chicago. “This will send a message to Donald Trump and his friends … This Pope will not roll for a kind of return to old roads.”

But the new ink is also a member of the Ugstinian system, which tends to adopt traditional theological views.

“The committee was torn, but Prevost was acceptable to both sides – conservative and progressive heroes,” said David Dean, who teaches the Christian faith in the Atlantic School of theology in Halifax.

“On the one hand, he is a critic of Trump and (US Vice President JD) and their approach to migration. He is a defender of minorities, a supporter of the synod method, and the environment. But he also opposes deacon and priests, he is hard to cancel and oppose it” the regions of the sexes. “

John Allen Junior, editor of the independent Catholic news site Kroos, said that the new Pope will have a tight rope to defend the Catholic social education and preserve Washington and Washington to it The influential Catholics “Maga” Besides.

Allen said that Pope Liu would have to “move between defense clearly” his values ​​without destroying his relationship with the US government.

He added: “If you want to accomplish anything, you should work with them.” “This will be an accurate balance of beating.”

Participated in additional reports from Jay Chazan in Washington, James Fonanilla Khan, New York and Joe Daniels, Bogota