Which Leo will be the inspiration for the pontificate of our new Pope?

The election of Robert Cardinal Provost as Pope has been met with a certain amount of warmth outside of the Church itself, which is surprising considering the profile of the man. In a time that sees the Church as an anachronism in the ‘developed’ world, an American ought to have felt like a step back after Pope Francis’ election.  Pope Francis was the first non-European Pope, and a Pope from a country not quite considered to be from the wealthy hemisphere.

Robert Francis Prevost was born on 14th September 1955, in Chicago. His father was a United States Navy veteran of World War II. In school, he was on the honour roll, he was yearbook editor-in-chief, secretary of the student council, and a member of the National Honor Society. He participated in speech and debate. All things to be suspicious of! He has a Doctorate in Canon Law.

What seems to have won over the literati for now is the assumption, affirmed by the Vatican, that his choice of name is an acknowledgment of the legacy of Leo XIII who was Pope from February 1878 until his death in July 1903, the fourth-longest reign of any pope.

Leo XIII is – these days – most well known for his encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’ (Of Revolutionary Change"), or Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor, which captured (rather than created from nothing) the essence of Catholic Social Teaching, at a time when the world was as divided as it is now, – if not more so – torn between the avarices of capitalism with its inhumane working conditions, and the utopian promises with the dystopian reality of communism. Leo XIII sought to navigate a narrow path at a time when the world needed an alternative to ideologies that sought each other’s destruction.

The appeal of Leo XIV is the hope (if not the promise) that he will build on the legacy of his 19th century predecessor, a champion of moderation and pragmatism and the quiet word in the swell of a world that has turned into a never-ending shouting match and impossible argumentation. Many are drawn to the possibility that he will continue the legacy of Pope Francis, focusing on social justice, climate change, and environmentalism.

Leo XIV was a missionary himself. He joined the mission in Peru in 1985 and was there until 1998. He returned again in 2014 as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo and titular bishop of Sufar. As much of his career has been spent on mission as in his home country of the United States. There is an expectation that taking up Leo XIII’s work on social justice through Rerum Novarum and with his connection to Latin America, that he will follow the path taken by Pope Francis through Laudato Si and his emphasis on a poor Church.

But what if Leo XIII is not the only Leo who inspired Cardinal Provost’s choice of name? Leo the First, the Great, was Pope from 440 to 461. He was the inspiration for Pope Leo XIII’s choice of name, so even if indirectly (and we do not know this for sure) his legacy could also be instructive for the new Pope.

Living at the time of St Augustine, Leo the Great oversaw – and conquered – an era of great confusion and discord within the Church. He took on the great theological and philosophical challenges of the time where he put to bed the heresies of Nestorianism and Monophysitism at the Council of Chalcedon.

Leo XIV will struggle to avoid dealing with similar divisions within the Church in the modern era. Although the promise of synodality was to bring everyone together along an enlightened path of harmony, the reality is that it has sown more confusion and division.

Leo the Great, like Leo XIII who spoke out for the dignity of the family and the human person in the face of capitalistic and communistic hegemonies, was equally passionate about defending the human person, qua person as the image of God. He said “Christian, acknowledge your dignity, and become a partner in the Divine nature. Refuse to return to old baseness through degenerate conduct. Remember the Head and Body of which you are a member. Recollect that you were rescued from the power of darkness and brought into God’s light and kingdom.”

As CEO of Christian Blind Mission Ireland, an international development NGO fighting to end the cycle of poverty and disability, I am excited by the election of Pope Leo XIV and the potential that he will further the promotion of Catholic Social Teaching inspired by Leo XIII. I am excited to have a Pope with a missionary spirit and a defender of the dignity of the human person. As a Catholic, I am excited by the prospect of a Canon lawyer, in the spirit of Pope Leo the Great, bringing clarity and precision to the many issues that are causing confusion amongst the faithful.

The task ahead, in a world of growing inequality, a world ever more divided and divisive, is a great one for Pope Leo XIV. He will need the heart of a lion. 

To read the full article: https://www.irishcatholic.com/which-leo-will-be-the-inspiration-for-the-pontificate-of-our-new-pope/