Pope Leo XIV has a challenging task – to balance reforms and conservatism
Some 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide have just got their new head in Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost (69). All eyes are now on the new pontiff, the first from the United States to ever hold this post. Comparisons with his predecessors, especially Pope Francis, will be inescapable for the religious head who leads an institution which has changed much in recent decades.
Pope Leo also spoke to the people of Peru in his short address. He is himself known to be fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese, apart from reading Latin and German. In a Church caught up between reform and conservatism, the media was also trying to discern in which direction the institution could be headed. But then, the Papacy is itself known to change individuals, and at this stage, this might amount to speculation at best.
In a way, the relatively speedy election result could be taken to reflect the growing importance of Latin America, Africa and even Asia in the Catholic Church. These are areas where faith and devotion has been growing, even as affluent parts of the West have seen a growing secularisation of society. For long, it was felt that a Cardinal from the US could not become Pope, as that would lead to too much of a concentration of power — spiritual and temporal. But this Conclave proved the theory wrong, even if the new Pope also has deep connections with Peru, another Latin American nation, much like Argentina, which was connected to the much-loved and respected late Pope Francis.
For Goa, the Conclave at the Vatican was a rather special one. For the first time, the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman was represented and Archbishop Filipe Neri Cardinal Ferrão took part in the College of Cardinals convened to appoint the apostolic successor of Saint Peter. Not just that, but some lists also considered Goa’s Cardinal as Papable, or one of those who could be elected as Pope.
Pope Leo XIV is just hours into his Papacy. Needless to say, he needs wisdom and good fortune, or God’s grace as the more devout would say, to steer the institution he heads, and the issues it faces. Among these are doctrinal debates, re-calibrating interests of the Global South and the Global North, recognising the role of women, and relations with other religions and Ecumenism. Social justice, climate change and political involvement are other subjects not easy to tackle, as are Vatican finances and governance reform. Declining Church attendance and vocations is felt particularly in Europe and North America. Some steps have been taken to address the sexual abuse crisis, but the need for more is also strongly felt.
The new Pope has stressed the need to build bridges, and spoke of peace, important visions in our troubled world. Some have seen him as more a «pastor of the Peruvian Church»; his style of managing Vatican affairs will tell. Observers have noted that Pope Francis elevated 108 out of the 133 cardinals who were eligible to vote, including Pope Leo XIV himself. Does this mean that this ensures the trajectory of a Francis-style papacy will continue? The outgoing Pope, in some ways, earned a rock star image with his likeable actions and humble ways of doing things. He won applause not just from his religious adherents and the faithful, but from many beyond. Not without a reason. Anyone following in his footsteps cannot perhaps ignore this reality.