Since Pope Francis appointed 80% of the cardinals in the conclave, he believed that someone who shared the Pope's vision would be elected, one of the Vatican ministers close to the Pope, entrusted with important responsibilities. The Minister of the Department of Bishops was elected.
What kind of person will the new Pope be? The media introduced him as the first American Pope and from the Augustinian Order, but it wasn't enough, so he spent the whole day researching the new Pope Leo XIV.
The keywords that stand out in the 70-year life of Cardinal Prévost before becoming the Pope are ‘Augustinian Order’ and ‘Peruvian Missionary.’ Born in Chicago, USA, to a devout family with two older brothers, he joined the Augustinian Order, was ordained a priest, and was sent to Peru, where he lived for 20 years as a missionary in his 30s and as a parish priest for 10 years in his 60s.
His long years of living with the poor under challenging conditions in Latin America would have left a deep impression on him.
After his 40s, he spent 15 years as head of the Augustinian Order. He visited the order in Korea five times during his tenure, demonstrating his dedication and concern for the Augustinian Order worldwide.
We don’t know all about his relationship with Pope Francis. Still, in late 2014, after completing his 12-year term as superior general of the order, Pope Francis consecrated Father Prevost a bishop, entrusted him with the duties of the Diocese of Chiclayo in Peru, and appointed him the Prefect of the Dicastery of Bishops in the Vatican in 2023.
The Augustinian Order's spirituality emphasizes unity. They dream of a community of one heart and one mind, achieved through unity with themselves, their neighbors, and God. With this spirituality, a missionary who lived in Peru became the Pope.
He was also curious about why he chose ‘Leo.’ He wanted to follow Pope Leo XIII. Leo XIII’s achievements were outstanding, as he issued the encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’ in 1891, suggesting what the state, employers, and clergy should do during turbulent times when families, labor, and human rights were threatened, and laid the foundation for Catholic social doctrine. It became an opportunity for the Catholic Church to play an active role in social issues.
Like Leo XIII in the late 19th century, he may have the will to help resolve the new situation symbolized by artificial intelligence (AI) in the early 21st century. In the first greeting after being elected as the Pope, the expressions ‘peace for all’, ‘disarmed peace’, ‘Christ as a bridge between God and the world’, and 'a bridge built through dialogue and encounter’ also caught the columnist's eye.
To summarize his brief and superficial study of Pope Leo XIV, the columnist said that he seems to be a ‘bridge-building Pope.’ Let’s not let him work alone, but let’s also become bridge-builders together. He prays for the new Pope, recalling the Zen song ‘Bridge’ lyrics that he often sang in his youth. Let us build bridges wherever needed, even between the South and the North.
