Filling the Fisherman’s Shoes

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, OSA, has been selected by the Church to be the successor to Peter. One struggles to understand the enormity of this - both the selection of the man and the responsibility that comes with the office.

When Jesus appeared to the Disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, He asked Peter three times if Peter loved him. And Peter answered affirmatively each time that he indeed did love the Lord. And Jesus told Peter three times to feed and tend his sheep. What came next was truly devastating. Christ said (John 21:18):

Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you would; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go.”

The enormity of the office is expressed here. Where Peter now goes is not up to him - it is up to Jesus Christ. Yet Peter must also recall that the Lord had prayed specifically for him (Luke 22:31-32):

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren.”

You have probably all heard many pundits and experts opine on whether Pope Leo XIV is a liberal or a conservative (two descriptors that are better left to the political world than to Church governance), and whether he will do this or that. We are only two days into the pontificate, and the speculation runs the gamut.

I’ll make a few observations.

It is wonderful to have an American pope and it is wonderful to hear him speak to the Church in English.

Those words came from the homily during his first mass as Pope when he was speaking to the cardinal electors. It is a beautiful reflection on the enormity of his mission but also on the joy that this mission proclaims, which is Jesus Christ. These words caught my eye and seem to give a glimpse of how Leo XIV might reign:

I say this first of all to myself, as the Successor of Peter, as I begin my mission as Bishop of Rome and, according to the well-known expression of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, am called to preside in charity over the universal Church (cf. Letter to the Romans, Prologue). Saint Ignatius, who was led in chains to this city, the place of his impending sacrifice, wrote to the Christians there: “Then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ, when the world no longer sees my body” (Letter to the Romans, IV, 1). Ignatius was speaking about being devoured by wild beasts in the arena – and so it happened – but his words apply more generally to an indispensable commitment for all those in the Church who exercise a ministry of authority. It is to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified (cf. Jn 3:30), to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.

Pope Leo XIV’s missionary background certainly comes through in these words.

As for his regnal name, Leo XIV, he tells us:

So we can see that our new pope has opened himself to the world with a very Christ-centered homily and with a love for the Church’s social teaching.

I was very happy to see the pope appear on the loggia wearing the traditional papal garb, to take a traditional regnal name, and have been happy to hear him chant and offer mass in Latin. It also appears that he will move into the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace. These are all good signs that the man is subordinate to the papal office and understands the importance of continuity with the past. It is a good start.

What an incredible time to be an American Catholic. Habemus papam: Bob from Chicago.