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Who is Pope Leo XIV?
Robert Francis Prevost was born on Sept. 14, 1955, in Chicago to Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martín and John Joseph.
His father was a World War II Navy veteran and school superintendent; his mother was a librarian who was very involved in parish life.
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Pope Leo XIV speaks multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese.
He earned a bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Villanova University in 1977 before pursuing his religious vocation.
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He completed his secondary studies at the minor seminary of the Augustinians in 1973 in Michigan. In 1977, he became a member of the Order of St. Augustine and took his solemn vows in 1981.
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He completed a master of divinity degree at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and earned a licentiate and doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He went on to teach canon law in seminaries during his time in Peru.
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He was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, by Archbishop Jean Jadot in Rome. He served extensively in Peru from 1985 to 1998, working as a parish pastor, seminary teacher, and diocesan official. He was also part of the leadership of Caritas Peru, the Church’s charitable organization.
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After being elected the head of the Augustinian Province of Chicago, he returned to the U.S. in 1999. He was elected prior general of the Augustinians in 2001 and then re-elected in 2007, serving as head of the order until 2013.
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Pope Francis appointed him apostolic administrator and then bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, in 2014 and 2015 respectively, and received episcopal consecration on Dec. 12, 2014, at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Chiclayo.
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He was made a cardinal by Pope Francis on Sept. 30, 2023.
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While serving the Church in Peru, Francis made him a member of the Dicastery for the Clergy in 2019 and then a member of the Dicastery for Bishops in 2020. In 2023, Francis made him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops.
Source: National Catholic Register - Francesca Pollio Fenton/CNA
Coat of Arms of Pope Leo XIV
Blazon
The left field is blue with a silver fleur-de-lis; the right is white, with a flaming heart pieced by an arrow, entirely red, and resting on an uncovered book.
Above the shield there is a silver mitre, adorned with three gold bands joined by a gold vertical post, with fluttering red infulae, fringed with gold and adorned with gold crosses; in front of the infulae there are the crossed Petrine keys, gold (bend) and silver (bend sinister), linked by a red cord.
Motto
IN ILLO UNO UNUM
Explanation
The coat of arms of the Holy Father Leo XIV
On the left field of the coat of arms of the Holy Father Leo XIV, the blue background recalls the heights of the heavens and is characterized by its Marian significance, a classic symbol referring to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the lily or fleur-de-lis (flos florum).
In the other field, white in colour, there is the emblem of the Augustinian Order, a flaming heart pieced by an arrow. This image symbolically represents the words of Saint Augustine in the book of Confessions: “Sagittaveras tu cor meum charitate tua” (“You have wounded my heart with your love”). It is an element that has always been present in the emblem of the Augustinians from the sixteenth century onwards, albeit with several variations, such as the presence of the book symbolizing the Word of God capable of transforming the heart of every man, as it was for Augustine. The book also recalls the enlightened works that the Doctor of Grace gave to the Church and humanity. White (in an ivory shade in the papal coat of arms) is a recurrent colour in other coats of arms of religious orders, and can be read as a symbol of holiness and purity.
The motto, “In Illo uno unum” (“In the one Christ we are one”), recalls the words of Saint Augustine in a sermon, the Exposition on Psalm 128, explaining that “in the one Christ we are one”, “one in the One Christ”.
Source: vaticannews.va
Pope Leo XIV
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