133 cardinals from around the world made the decision in just over 24 hours Thursday
The white smoke that escapes from the Sistine Chapel said on Thursday that a cardinal conclave has selected a new pope: Robert Prevost in the United States. He is the first American pope in history and will go through Leo XIV. Cardinal Dominique Mamberti of France made this announcement.
Prévost, 69, comes from Chicago. CNN reports that Prevost did a missionary job in Peru and led an office of the Vatican for checking the bishops. He was the bishop of Chiclayo from 2014 to 2023; He notably added three women to the block of voting for the bishops. His election is remarkable, according to The Associated PressSince the Americans were not elected Pope because of the country’s geopolitical power.
The largest group of cardinals in history, 133 in total, had kidnapped itself in the emblematic chapel of the city of Vatican to determine the successor of Pope Francis, after his death last month after a papacy of 12 years. The New York Times Reports that the conclave itself lasted a little more than 24 hours; The previous elections extended two or three days. Pope Francis had appointed many cardinals who participated in the vote, but some met for the first time.
Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires in 1936, died on April 21, a few months after being hospitalized with bronchitis. Pope Francis had fought with respiratory problems for most of his life after a battle against pneumonia when he was a young man. After Pope Benoît XVI abdicated his papacy in 2013, just under eight years as Pope, Pope Francis began on March 13, 2013.
Pushing a more progressive program than its predecessors, Pope Francis preached understanding and humanity. His last message to the public was: “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression.” His papacy was marked by what people considered as liberal positions to the LGBTQ +community, climate change, capitalism and divorce, although others criticized his comments on the roles of women in society and a homophobic insult he made last year. Nevertheless, he won the familiar title, “the people’s pope”.
