Quote:A new pope has taken the helm of the Catholic Church, after being elected in a two-day conclave in Vatican City.

Crowds of faithful erupted into cheers as Robert Prevost, 69, appeared at the balcony overlooking St Peter's Square for the first time.

He will now be known as Pope Leo XIV, and is the first American to be elected to the role.

"May peace be with all of you," he said to the crowds below.

Quote:Robert Francis Prevost, 69, will be the 267th occupant of the throne of St Peter and he will be known as Leo XIV.

 

He is the first American to fill the role of pope, although he is considered as much a cardinal from Latin America because of the many years he spent as a missionary in Peru.


Born in Chicago in 1955 to parents of Spanish and Franco-Italian descent, Prevost served as an altar boy and was ordained in 1982.


Although he moved to Peru three years later, he returned regularly to the US to serve as a pastor and a prior in his home city.


He has Peruvian nationality and is fondly remembered as a figure who worked with marginalized communities and helped build bridges.


He spent 10 years as a local parish pastor and as a teacher at a seminary in Trujillo in north-western Peru.


In 2014, Pope Francis made him Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru. He is well known to cardinals because of his high-profile role as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Latin America which has the important task of selecting and supervising bishops.


He became archbishop in January 2023 and within a few months Francis made him a cardinal.