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THE CITY OF Chicago is celebrating the election of Robert Francis Prevost, a Chicagoan himself, as the new head of the Catholic Church.
The former cardinal was announced as the new Pope yesterday evening, taking on the pontifical name of Pope Leo XIV.
The new Pope was born in Chicago in the US state of Illinois. He attended school in the Chicago suburbs and a studied for a Master of Divinity from the Catholic Technological Union graduate school in Chicago, during which time he also worked as a physics and maths teacher at a high school in the city.
He spent the following decades split between Chicago and Peru, where he became a citizen in 2015 and where locals have also been celebrating his appointment.
The new pope’s older brother, John Prevost, has said that he is “tremendously proud” of his brother.
“Did he want this? Not at all. The responsibility, it’s heavy. It’s heavy on your shoulders,” John said in an interview with WGN, a Chicago television station.
“I think being the first one from North America, being the first American, people are going to be watching … I don’t think he wants that horrible responsibility. It’s a great honor, but look what he has to uphold,” John said.
He told WGN that they had discussed papal names on Tuesday while they were playing online games together (Words with Friends and Wordle).
“He mentioned Leo. I said, ‘Well, don’t be Leo, because you wouldn’t you be Leo the 13th, and that would be unlucky.’ So he did his research, and it was Leo the 14th, and that’s what it came,” Robert said.
He said his brother will be guided by his years working in Peru: “He got to see the other side of the world, the poor and impoverished… I think as Christians, isn’t that what we’re supposed to do is look out for that group of people that are forgotten?”
In an interview with ABC News, John said that when the brothers were young children, a neighbour said she believed Robert would become the first Pope from the US.
When Robert Prevost was in the first grade, his neighbor told him he would be the first American pope, his brother told ABC News' Alex Perez.
— ABC News (@ABC) May 9, 2025
On Thursday, that prophecy came true, when Prevost was elected to be the 267th pontiff, the first from the U.S. https://t.co/GzWHi5FXNj pic.twitter.com/5NtDkThn0T
The governor of Illinois JB Pritzker called Pope Leo XIV’s appointment “historic”.
“Pope Leo XIV ushers in a new chapter that I join those in our state welcoming in at a time when we need compassion, unity, and peace,” he said.
Former classmate Nadia Weer told ABC News that the new Pope was so devout and studious in school that his nickname was “Father Robert”, adding that they “always assumed he would be a priest”.
“I’m really proud of him. You like people to be successful when they deserve it. And Robert does deserve it.”
Wrigley Field baseball park, the home turf of the Chicago Cubs, has displayed the message: “Hey Chicago. He’s a Cubs fan!”
(John Prevost has poured cold water on that, though; apparently the new Pope is a White Sox supporter.)
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson wrote on social media: “Congratulations to the first American Pope Leo XIV! We hope to welcome you back home soon.”
“Everything dope, including the Pope, comes from Chicago!” Johnson said.
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