Leo XIV
Biography
Robert Francis Prevost was born on September 14, 1955 in Chicago, Illinois (United States).
At a young age, he joined the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA), where he took his solemn vows on August 29, 1981, and was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982.
He earned advanced degrees from several institutions: a Masters of Divinity from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and a Doctor of Canon Law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome (Angelicum).
In 1985, he was sent to Peru as an Augustinian missionary. He served in Chulucanas. In 1988, he was transferred to Trujillo, where he served as prior of the community (1988–1992). In 1999, he was elected provincial prior of the “Mother of Good Counsel” Province in Chicago.
From 2001 to 2013, he served as Prior General of the Order of Saint Augustine.
In 2014, he was appointed apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo. He was ordained a bishop on December 12, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. He has been Bishop of Chiclayo since November 26, 2015. He served as vice president of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference from 2018 to 2023.
He became a member of the Congregation for the Clergy in 2019 and a member of the Congregation for Bishops in 2020. On April 15 of that same year, the Pope appointed him apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Callao.
On January 30, 2023, Pope Francis appointed him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. That same year, he was created and proclaimed a cardinal, and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
Following the death of Pope Francis, the conclave gathered in Rome elected Robert Prevost as the new Pontiff on May 8, 2025, the feast day of Our Lady of Pompeii.
Pope Leo XIV’s motto is “In Illo uno unum”, which translates from Latin as “In the One, we are one” or “In Him, one alone.” This phrase, taken from St. Augustine’s commentary on Psalm 127, underscores his focus on the unity and communion of Christians in Christ.