Pope Leo XIV

The First Augustinian, First American Pope

Born September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, Robert Francis Prevost is the first Pope from the Order of Saint Augustine and the second Pontiff from the Americas, after Pope Francis. Though from the United States, he spent over a decade as a missionary in Peru.

Early Life and Formation

He is the son of Louis Marius Prevost, of French-Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish heritage. He joined the Augustinian Minor Seminary, earned a degree in Mathematics and Philosophy from Villanova University (1977), and entered the Augustinian novitiate that same year. He made solemn profession on August 29, 1981.

He studied theology at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, then was sent to Rome for Canon Law studies at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum). He was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, in Rome.

Missionary and Educator in Peru

Prevost earned his doctorate in Canon Law in 1987 and began missionary work in Chulucanas and Trujillo, Peru. Over eleven years, he served as prior, formation director, judicial vicar, and professor in Trujillo’s major seminary. He also led parishes in underserved areas, including Saint Rita and Our Lady of Monserrat.

Leadership in the Augustinian Order

In 1999, he was elected Provincial Prior of the Chicago-based Province of “Mother of Good Counsel.” In 2001, he was elected Prior General of the Order of Saint Augustine, and re-elected in 2007.

Episcopal Ministry in Peru

Appointed Apostolic Administrator of Chiclayo in 2014, he was ordained bishop on December 12, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. He became Bishop of Chiclayo in 2015 and held several national Church leadership roles, including Vice-President of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference.

He served on Vatican congregations, including the Dicastery for Bishops, and in 2020 was named Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Callao.

Prefect and Cardinal

On January 30, 2023, Pope Francis named him Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, raising him to the rank of Archbishop. He was created a Cardinal on September 30, 2024, and assigned the Diaconate of Saint Monica.

He participated in papal journeys and both sessions of the Synod on Synodality. On February 6, 2025, he was promoted to the Order of Bishops, receiving the title of the Suburbicarian See of Albano.

In March 2025, during Pope Francis’s hospitalization, Cardinal Prevost led the faithful in praying the Rosary for the Holy Father’s health in St. Peter’s Square.

His episcopal motto, “In Illo uno unum” (“In the one Christ, we are one”), reflects his Augustinian vision of unity in the Body of Christ.