Holy Trinity Catholic Church

St. John the Baptist Catholic Church

“Peace be with all of you!” - With these words, Pope Leo XIV greeted the world for the first time. The Conclave has elected Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost as the 267th Bishop of Rome. His election was announced from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica by Cardinal Protodeacon Dominique Mamberti.

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.