Habemus Papam - First American to lead the Catholic Church - National Catholic Reporter
A note on the name: Pope Leo XIII was the first to close out the Church's tolarance of slavery, and was a celebrant of the rights of labor. Both good signs.
A Chicago-born Augustinian friar has been elected the first American pope in the history of the Roman Catholic church.
Cardinal Robert Prevost, 69, who heads the influential Vatican Dicastery for Bishops, walked out onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to the cheers of thousands of faithful gathering for the announcement at 7:15 p.m. Rome time today (April 8).
Prevost, born in south Chicago, has spent most of his life outside of the United States, a factor likely to have made him more acceptable to the College of Cardinals in his selection,
By selecting an American, the cardinals have defied conventional wisdom that a man from the United States would never ascend the throne of St. Peter as long as the U.S. was a superpower.
White smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel announcing the election of the 267th successor to St. Peter just after 6 p.m. Rome time.
He appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica about 8:20 p.m. as crowds cheered in St. Peter's Square. Pilgrims waved flags and white handkerchiefs. A custom.
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