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Church leaders and Catholic organisations worldwide have welcomed Pope Leo XIV’s election with joy, highlighting his commitment to peace, humility, and care for the vulnerable.

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Vatican City, May 9, 2025 / 04:57 am (CNA).

Just hours after being elected the Catholic Church’s 267th pontiff, Pope Leo XIV has three appointments on his agenda: a Mass with cardinals, praying the Regina Caeli, and greeting journalists and media who covered the conclave.

According to Vatican News, Leo XIV will celebrate a Mass at 11 a.m. Rome time with the College of Cardinals in the Sistine Chapel.

Then he will lead his first Regina Caeli, a Marian prayer recited especially during the Easter season, at Roman noon on Sunday.

Rather than leading the prayer from a window of the Apostolic Palace, as popes have customarily done on Sundays for the Angelus or Regina Caeli, he is scheduled to appear again at the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, as he did after the “habemus papam” announcement on May 8.

On the following morning, the new pope will greet the journalists and media professionals who have been in Rome to cover the funeral of Pope Francis, the “sede vacante,” and the conclave.

After his election on May 8, the 69-year-old pope returned to the building where he has been living in Rome, the Palazzo Sant’Uffizio, a Vatican building housing the offices of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the apartments of some Vatican officials.

Photos shared on X by Xaviere Sister Nathalie Becquart, undersecretary of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, show Leo XIV greeting Becquart and taking a “selfie” with her and others during his surprise visit to the Palazzo Sant’Uffizio after he was announced as pope.

Following the election of Pope Leo XIV Christian leaders across the ecumenical spectrum send messages and statements highlighting a shared commitment to unity, peace, and collaborative witness in the spirit of dialogue.

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The Holy See announces the upcoming schedule for the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, including the Mass of Inauguration to officially begin his pontificate.

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The first words of Pope Leo XIV offer a precious insight for the life of the Church.

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The Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has congratulated Pope Leo XIV on his election as the 267th Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church.

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The morning after being elected the 267th Pope, Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass with the Cardinal electors in the Sistine Chapel, reminding them that "we are to bear witness to our joyful faith in Christ" while warning that where faith is lacking, life loses meaning.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 8, 2025 / 17:26 pm (CNA).

EWTN Chairman and CEO Michael Warsaw reacted with joy to the election of the first American pontiff.

“It is with great joy that I welcome the election of Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as Pope Leo XIV,” Warsaw said in a statement. “The election of a new pope is always a historic moment in the life of the Church, but the election of the first American-born pope is particularly momentous.”

Reflecting on the new pope’s trajectory, Warsaw noted that “the new Holy Father carries with him enormous experience as a missionary priest and bishop, which no doubt will help to shape his ministry as the 266th successor of St. Peter.”

Warsaw, who under Pope Francis served as a consultor with the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, added that “on behalf of the global EWTN family, I want to assure Pope Leo of our prayers as he begins his service to the universal Church.” 

The 69-year-old new pope, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, was elected the first pope from the United States on Thursday. A native of Chicago, Leo spoke in Italian and Spanish from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, addressing the tens of thousands of people gathered below. His first words to the faithful were “Peace be with you all.”

The identity of the new pope was announced just over an hour after white smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. The cardinal electors watched from balconies flanking the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica as Cardinal Dominique Mamberti declared in Latin: “Habemus papam!”

EWTN is the largest Catholic media organization in the world, with 11 global TV channels and numerous regional channels that are broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day, seven days a week to over 435 million television households in more than 160 countries and territories. 

EWTN platforms also include radio services transmitted through SIRIUS/XM, iHeart Radio, and over 600 domestic and international AM and FM radio affiliates; a worldwide shortwave radio service; one of the most visited Catholic websites in the U.S.; as well as EWTN Publishing, its book publishing division.

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., EWTN News operates multiple global news services, including Catholic News Agency; The National Catholic Register newspaper and digital platform; ACI Prensa in Spanish; ACI Digital in Portuguese; ACI Stampa in Italian; ACI Africa in English, French, and Portuguese; ACI MENA in Arabic; CNA Deutsch in German; and ChurchPop, a digital platform that creates content in several languages. It also produces numerous television news programs including “EWTN News Nightly,” “EWTN News In Depth,” “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly,” and “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo,” among others.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 8, 2025 / 16:32 pm (CNA).

U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, along with former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, and scores of other elected officials throughout the country expressed joy and excitement over the selection of the first American pope, who is from Chicago.

Pope Leo XIV — formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost — was selected by the College of Cardinals in Rome Thursday on the second day of the papal conclave to serve as the immediate successor to Pope Francis, who died on April 21.

He is the first pope from the United States and from North America. Francis was the first pope from South America.

“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named pope,” Trump said in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

“It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American pope,” Trump added. “What excitement, and what a great honor for our country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!”

Vice President JD Vance, who is a convert to Catholicism, also congratulated the new pontiff in a post on X. 

“I’m sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the Church,” the vice president said. “May God bless him!”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is Catholic, also shared congratulatory remarks: “May God grant him wisdom, courage, and grace as he carries out his sacred ministry.”

Former President Joe Biden, who was the second Catholic president to serve in the White House, also celebrated the news in a post on X in a joint statement with his wife.

“Habemus papam — May God bless Pope Leo XIV of Illinois,” the former president said. “Jill and I congratulate him and wish him success.”

Chicago officials beam with hometown pride

Former president Barack Obama, who spent much of his adult life living in Chicago, issued a statement with his wife, Michelle, congratulating “a fellow Chicagoan, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV.” 

“This is a historic day for the United States, and we will pray for him as he begins the sacred work of leading the Catholic Church and setting an example for so many, regardless of faith,” Obama said.

Pritzker, who has served as the Illinois governor since 2019, referred to “the first American leading the Catholic Church” as a “historic moment” in a post on X.

“Hailing from Chicago, Pope Leo XIV ushers in a new chapter that I join those in our state welcoming in at a time when we need compassion, unity, and peace,” the governor said.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson expressed joy over the news in a post on X and has already encouraged a papal visit back to his hometown.

“Everything dope, including the pope, comes from Chicago!” the mayor said. “Congratulations to the first American Pope Leo XIV! We hope to welcome you back home soon.”

In his first address, Pope Leo XIV urged people to build bridges through dialogue and encounter to work toward unity and peace.

The Holy Father expressed his desire to “walk together … as a united Church, always searching for peace, justice, and trying to always work as men and women faithful to Jesus Christ, without fear to proclaim the Gospel, to be missionaries.”

CNA Staff, May 8, 2025 / 16:12 pm (CNA).

U.S. bishops on Thursday hailed the election of former Cardinal Robert Prevost as Pope Leo XIV, a Chicago native and the first pope born in the United States of America.

Cardinals elected the newly-titled Leo to the supreme pontificate on Thursday afternoon, with white smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel signaling the closing of the conclave with the selection of the new pope.

Leo appeared before hundreds of thousands of faithful and spectators in St. Peter’s Square shortly thereafter, addressing the universal Church and the world for the first time as pope.

“God loves us, all of us, evil will not prevail,” the pope said. “We are all in the hands of God. Without fear, united, hand in hand with God and among ourselves, we will go forward.”

U.S. bishops react

In an immediate reaction, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Thursday afternoon shared a photo of the newly elected Holy Father on X. “Our Holy Father, Leo XIV,” the bishops said in the post.

Other bishops took to social media to share their joy over the election. “Omnes Cum Petro ad Jesum per Mariam!” Lansing, Michigan, Bishop Earl Boyea wrote, meaning: “All with Peter to Jesus through Mary!”

Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Jeffrey Monforton wrote on X: “God bless our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV as he shares the joy of the Gospel with all the world. Together, let us fervently pray for Pope Leo XIV and his papal office.”

Kansas City, Kansas, Archbishop-elect Shawn McKnight wrote that the Church “welcome[s] our Holy Father” with “great thanksgiving.”

“Let the Church find hope in this moment and let us pray together as one people of God, entrusting our new Holy Father to the guidance of the Holy Spirit," the prelate said. “I pledge my loyalty and love to Pope Leo XIV as he takes up the mantle of St. Peter during this challenging time. May God bless him as he serves the Church and our entire world.”

Arlington, Virginia, Bishop Michael Burbidge encouraged the faithful to “offer prayers, sacrifices, and works of charity for Pope Leo XIV and his intentions.”

“United in prayer for Pope Leo XIV, may we ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen him daily with divine grace in order that he may bring the light of faith and the unchanging and life-giving word of God to the challenges of our times,” Burbidge said.

Brooklyn, New York, Bishop Robert Brennan said the Church welcomes the new pope “warmly, with great love.”

“God has given us a new shepherd,” he said. “Let’s pray for him with all our hearts.”

Gary, Indiana, Bishop Robert McClory urged the faithful in a video address to “keep [the new pope] in our prayers ... thank God for the gift that he’ll be for the Church, and take some time to celebrate tonight.”

“And make sure you offer an Our Father, a Hail Mary, [and] a Glory Be for our new Pope Leo,” he said. “What a great joy to all the Church. ... Habemus papam!”