Cardinal Robert Prevost, a Chicago native who spent his career ministering in Peru, has been elected the new Pope, becoming the first American to be named pontiff in the Catholic Church’s 2,000-year history.
Robert Prevost’s journey to becoming pope
The 69-year-old will become Leo XIV as he succeeds the late Pope Francis, who brought the Peruvian-American to the Vatican back in 2023 to head the office of bishops.
The globe-trotting Prevost has spent years leading the faithful in Chicago, Peru and Italy, with the American now in charge of overseeing the church’s flock of more than 1.4 billion people.
What to know about Prevost’s upbringing
Prevost was born in Chicago on Sept. 14, 1955, to Louis Marius Prevost and Mildred Martinez.
He earned a Bachelors of Science at the Villanova University in Pennsylvania and soon after sought to become a priest, joining the Order of St. Augustine in 1977.