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24 May 2025 23:24
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  •   Home > News > International

    Pope Leo XIV has already told us a lot about himself, and his agenda in 10 minutes

    He was a close confidant of the previous pontiff, Pope Francis, and we learnt a lot about what he might be planning to do after his brief speech.


    There's a saying in the Vatican that roughly translates to: a fat pope comes after a thin one.

    It's supposed to reflect the fact cardinals have throughout history often chosen to elect a candidate to lead the Catholic Church with a different outlook to their predecessor. 

    On Thursday, however, that didn't happen.

    Robert Prevost entered this week's conclave as a cardinal and emerged Pope Leo XIV.

    He was a close confidant of the previous pontiff, Pope Francis, and we learnt a lot about what he might be planning to do when he spoke for roughly 10 minutes from the balcony overlooking St Peter's Square after his election.

    Let me break it down for you.

    Pope Francis got a shout-out

    Pope Leo was a friend of the late Pope Francis.

    In his address, which was delivered in Italian with part of it straying into Spanish, it didn't take him long to refer to the previous pontiff.

    He made special mention of Pope Francis's blessing delivered from the same balcony on Easter Sunday, just hours before his death.

    "We still have in our ears that weak but always courageous voice," Pope Leo told the crowd in St Peter's Square on Thursday evening.

    The fact Pope Leo drew parallels to his predecessor is unlikely to be an accident.

    He's not considered a compromise candidate or someone who'll take the church in a different direction.

    His election signals continuity for Catholics.

    Building bridges 'through dialogue'

    Peace, and the need to strive for it, was a key thread sewn through Pope Leo's address.

    His pontificate comes amid a backdrop of division and ongoing deadly global conflicts.

    Aside from the deep chasms opening in the pontiff's native United States linked to the 2024 Presidential election, wars in Ukraine and the Middle East continue to rage.

    As part of his opening speech, Pope Leo said: "Help us too, then help each other to build bridges — with dialogue, with encounter, uniting all of us to be one people always in peace."

    He then added an exclamation point: "Thank you, Pope Francis!"

    Pope Leo's predecessor spoke passionately about the need for global unity and peace, and if the new pontiff's first address is anything to go by, it's going to be one of the pillars of his papacy too.

    Augustinian austerity likely

    Pope Leo referred to himself in the speech as being "a son of Saint Augustine". It's important.

    He's going to be the Catholic Church's first Augustinian pope.

    It's a significant order within the church, and follows the teachings of St Augustine, including an emphasis on community and a shared pursuit of God.

    As a mendicant order, it relies on donations, rather than property or other funding streams, to carry out its work.

    Pope Leo is an Augustinian Friar. 

    Sometimes the way they live is described as "poverty", in that they count on the generosity of others for support and also pooling shared resources.

    In that way there's yet another link to Pope Francis. 

    Although he wasn't an Augustinian, he did famously live a simple lifestyle, and snubbed the opportunity to reside in the grand Apostolic Palace.

    Instead, he chose an austere room in a Vatican guesthouse.

    Pope Leo's lifelong links to St Augustine's teachings are likely to influence his papacy and it's no surprise he referenced it in his first speech.

    © 2025 ABC Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved

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