Fifth Sunday of Easter
May 17, 2025 Column Father De Celles
Pope Leo XIV. We have new Pope, Leo. May God grant him the fullness of the grace of his office and ordination to follow in the footsteps of his illustrious namesake, Pope Leo I, known to history as “Leo the Great.”
His election has been greeted with overwhelming enthusiasm by Catholics and media. Even the secular media seems a bit obsessed, especially with the novelty of an “American Pope,” from Chicago, and a White Sox fan, no less.
Much of the excitement, though, seems to generate from the fact that he is at once both like and different from Pope Francis. The “progressive” crowd (both Catholic and secular) seems content and relieved in knowing he was elected by a like-minded majority of the college of cardinals, apparently chosen as a compromise between other “progressive” candidates. The “conservative” crowd (mainly Catholic) takes heart in his public embrace of relatively minor papal traditions, and that he was not known for being as radically progressive as the alternative candidates. And both sides seem relieved that he is calm and thoughtful, and has a reputation as a man who listens respectfully to opposing views and knows how to govern. In other words, different from Pope Francis.
Some, however, do not share the unbridled enthusiasm of the masses—even many of the optimistic conservative pundits. Some remind us that that Pope Leo was, in fact, elected as a compromise between radical candidates, even if he was also at least acquiesced to by conservative cardinal electors. Some are also concerned by the fact that his positions on many theological and ecclesial issues are largely unknown: prior to conclave the excellent website “The College of Cardinals Report” listed Cardinal Robert Prevost (now Leo XIV) as having ambiguous positions on most of their key “Where He Stands” issues.
For myself, I remember that much of the same enthusiasm greeted the election of Pope Francis: the novelty of a Latin American Pope, who was seen as conservative by the conservatives and liberal by the liberals. At that time I knew something of Cardinal Bergoglio’s record, and did not share the enthusiasm.
However, there are hopeful signs with Pope Leo XIV. First, his public display of traditional symbols and vocabulary. Also, none of the more faithful cardinals or bishops have sounded any objection or concern to his election (at least not as far as I’m aware).
And some excellent Cardinals have spoken very hopefully. Cardinal Gerhard Müller told the Associated Press this week: “I am convinced that he (Pope Leo) will overcome these superfluous tensions (which were) damaging for the church…We cannot avoid all the conflicts, but we have to avoid the not necessary conflicts, the superfluous conflicts.” With regard to the liturgy and the suppression of the “Old Mass,” Müller added, “According to his character, I think (Leo) is able to speak with people and to find a very good solution that is good for everybody.” When asked if he voted for Cardinal Prevost in the conclave, Müller replied, “Oh, I cannot say. But I am content, no?”
But of course our greatest source of hope is in Christ. The Church is a mess, especially in Rome. But the gates of hell will not prevail against Her, and Peter is always a key part of Christ’s plan to defend Her, and to make Her flourish. So, let us take to heart the words of Cardinal Muller, who wrote elsewhere:
“We believe in the Holy Spirit, who leads the Church of Christ. And we pray that the same Spirit of God will strengthen the newly elected Pope Leo XIV so as to unite the Church in professing ‘Christ, the Son of the living God’ (Matthew 16:16).
“Let us hope that the new Pope …will follow the good and saintly popes…and contribute to overcoming the divisions in Christendom and the tensions in the world, so that all Christians may be united in Christ, the Son of the living God, and that, with the help of the moral authority of the papacy, the peace of God might enter the hearts of men, and hatred and war on earth might be overcome.”
And so I encourage you to join me in praying for our new Holy Father, and to hope in Jesus Christ. In the words of our friend, Cardinal Raymond Burke:
“Please join me in thanking Our Lord for the election of Pope Leo XIV, Successor of Saint Peter, as the Shepherd of the Church throughout the world. I urge [you]…to pray fervently for Pope Leo XIV that Our Lord, through the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Saint Peter Apostle, and Pope Saint Leo the Great, will grant him abundant wisdom, strength, and courage to do all that Our Lord is asking of Him in these tumultuous times. May God bless Pope Leo and grant him many years. Viva il Papa!”
What’s in a Name? Our new Pope explained his choice of names to the cardinals in his first formal meeting with them after the conclave:
“I chose to take the name Leo XIV. There are different reasons for this, but mainly because Pope Leo XIII [1878 to 1903] in his historic Encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor.”
This may also be a very hopeful sign, in that by today’s standards Rerum Novarum very closely aligns with modern conservative Catholic economic thought. Although later interpretations of the Church’s teaching on “social justice” have sometimes veered leftward, the writings of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI were much more in line with the perspective of Rerum Novarum, especially in their defense of “free market capitalism.” Hopefully, our new Pope’s name may indicate a similar return to the basics of Leo XIII.
“Leo the Great.” Then there’s Pope Leo I, one of 3 popes called “the Great,” who became pope in 440AD. It was a time of rapid growth for the Church and time to clarify doctrine, as several heresies also grew. Pope Leo I acted strongly against the heretics, especially in writing to the bishops across the Roman Empire, emphasizing unity of doctrine and with the Pope. At the ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in A.D. 451 his letter defining the unity of Christ’s divine and human natures—the “hypostatic union”—led the Council fathers to declare in one voice: “Peter has spoken through Leo.”
History also tells us that when Attila the Hun invaded Italy in A.D. 452 and threatened to enter and conquer and pillage Rome, Leo went out to meet him and convinced him to spare Rome. Legend has it that as the aged Leo knelt and spoke to Attila, the Hun saw two giants on either side of the Pope, wielding fiery swords. Then behind them he saw a huge army of angel warriors with flaming weapons. Attila capitulated.
Oremus pro invicem, et pro Papa Leone. Fr. De Celles