Local leaders congratulate new Pope Leo XIV

LEADERS in TT, including new Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, have joined the international community in congratulating the Roman Catholic church as it elected its 267th pope on May 8. In particular, Persad-Bissessar wished for the new pope's "success and enriching stewardship" of the church.

The new pope is Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost. Prevost will be the first elected pope from the US in history.

He is taking on the name Leo XIV.

Born in 1955, the 69-year-old Prevost entered the novitiate (as a novice) of the Order of Saint Augustine in the province of Our Lady of Good Counsel in St Louis.

He gave his vows in August 1981 and studied at the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago, receiving his diploma in theology.

He began studying canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University at 27, where he received priestly ordination on June 19, 1982. After receiving his licence in 1982, he was sent to work in the mission of Chulucanas in Pirua, Peru, from 1985.

In 1987 he was awarded a doctorate with the thesis: “The role of the local prior in the order of Saint Augustine.”

That year he was also elected director of vocations and the missions of the Augustinian province of Olympia Fields in Illinois.

He served as a community prior and director of a joint mission in Trujillo up until 1992 and taught in the archdiocese of Trujillo until 1998.

In 2020, Prevost was appointed apostolic administrator of the diocese of Callao by Pope Francis. He was later appointed as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America in 2023.

Prevost was among 133 cardinal electors that entered the conclave in the Sistine Chapel after Pope Francis’ death on April 21.

The conclave gathered on May 7, 16 days after Francis’ death. The two-day conclave went to two votes before the result was announced.

After he was announced, the new pope exited the Sistine Chapel in traditional papal vestments to greet the people at Vatican City.

“Dearest brothers and sisters, this is peace of the resurrected Christ, the good shepherd who has given up even his life for God. I should also like this greeting of peace to enter our hearts and your families and to all people wherever they are. All people throughout the world. Peace be with you.

“This is the peace of the resurrected Christ, a humble and persevering peace which comes from God.

Congratulations from around the world have already begun to pour in, including from TT.

During the post-cabinet media briefing on the day of his appointment, the Prime Minister congratulated the Roman Catholic community on the election of the new pope.

“As we pray for his success and enriching stewardship of the Roman Catholic church, we also congratulate him on the very historic occasion of becoming the first pope of American origin.

“The Roman Catholic church has always played a pivotal role in our global community from human development to spiritual enlightenment. Given the many challenges the world is facing, I have confidence that based on Pope Leo’s career of kindness, love, humility and dedication towards humanity, he will play an inspirational role.”

President Christine Kangaloo said, “As the first pope from the US, the historic moment is one of immense pride and inspiration, not only for his fellow countrymen but also for millions around the world, including the faithful here in TT."

Kangaloo expressed her best wishes for the new pope’s success as he begins his ministry, offering spiritual leadership to the global community.

Archbishop Jason Charles Gordon said he was happy to hear that there was a new pope.

He pointed out that the name chosen by the pope is always significant.

“Leo the XIII is a very significant pope. He was known for his work on social justice and the Bible and making the Bible central to the church. He has taken the role of Leo XIV which says something about his papacy with the matters of justice and biblical faith and settling a society in the midst of turmoil.”

Bishop of the TT Anglican Diocese wished the new pope well saying he prayed his ministry would be a meaningful one.

“I would like to congratulate the Roman Catholic community on the swift and efficient manner in which a new leader was elected. I wish the new leader well and we look forward, with eager anticipation, to what he will bring to the table during these days of a very dynamic world. The pope is usually a person of much influence and we look forward to his ministry to the world.

“We would like to think that there’s a message here for the Americas with the last pope coming from Argentina and this pope coming from the US, it seems there’s a message being sent to our hemisphere. So we look forward to how that might unfold during his ministry in our currently troubled world.”

Berkley said he hoped the pope’s influence could lead to some positive progress in world issues such as international conflict, climate action and immigration issues.

“As a Roman Catholic I celebrate with the church on the election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as Pope Leo XIV,” said Port of Spain North/St Ann’s West MP Stuart Young.

Moments after the announcement of the new pope, Newsday visited the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception, Port of Spain, to ask Catholics their views.

Although not wanting to be identified, one 22-year-old worshipper said he felt blessed by the news and was deeply inspired by the new pope’s words.

“I actually came here to pray for him because I was so moved,” he said.

Although surprised by the pope’s nationality, he said it was all equal in the eyes of God and prayed that Pope Leo would be able to continue the great work of the late Pope Francis.

Another worshipper who also wished to remain anonymous said she thought the new pope’s nationality was ironic considering the recent AI-generated image posted by the US President. In the post to his Truth Social account on May 2, the image depicted Trump in full papal attire. In the post, Trump said he should be the number one choice for the pontiff’s replacement.

“It’s um, very interesting to say the least. But we will have to wait and see how all this plays out,” she said.

Gospel singer Heaven King, however, was all smiles. “As a Catholic, I’m very happy about our new pope, he will bring a lot of good aspects to our religious community.

“The pope’s representation inspires me as a gospel singer representing TT. The pope has always inspired my mom, brothers, sisters and my children, so I truly believe that the new pope would be able to carry the mantle.

“We love him and wish him all the best.”

with reporting by Ryan Hamilton-Davis