Pope Leo XIV greets faithful for 1st time from St. Peter’s Basilica balcony

Pope Leo XIV appeared on the balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square on Thursday after he was elected the new leader of the Catholic Church.

“Peace be with you,” the new pope told a cheering crowd, repeating his predecessor’s call for a Church engaged with the modern world.

“To all you brothers and sisters of Rome, of Italy, of all over the world. We want to be a synodal church, a church which walks, a church which always looks for peace, always looks for charity, always looks to be close, especially to those who suffer.”

Robert Francis Prevost, 69, who takes the papal name Pope Leo XIV, is the first pope from the United States and a relative unknown on the global stage.
Originally from Chicago, he has spent most of his career as a missionary in Peru and became a cardinal only in 2023.