This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqg5101w2go
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| 'I flipped out, I said no way!' - Chicago reacts to hometown Pope | 'I flipped out, I said no way!' - Chicago reacts to hometown Pope |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| Mary Simons drove to the church where Pope Leo XIV spent his childhood when she heard the news he had been named leader of the Catholic Church | Mary Simons drove to the church where Pope Leo XIV spent his childhood when she heard the news he had been named leader of the Catholic Church |
| The church where Pope Leo XIV attended mass as a child and served as an altar boy is now an empty shell. | The church where Pope Leo XIV attended mass as a child and served as an altar boy is now an empty shell. |
| Only the stained glass windows remain intact inside the sturdy facade of St Mary's of the Assumption on the far edge of Chicago's South Side. | Only the stained glass windows remain intact inside the sturdy facade of St Mary's of the Assumption on the far edge of Chicago's South Side. |
| The disrepair is one indication of how the Catholic Church's power and influence has been ebbing away in America's big cities. | The disrepair is one indication of how the Catholic Church's power and influence has been ebbing away in America's big cities. |
| And yet, around this city there's palpable excitement, particularly among Catholics, that the new pontiff is not only American - he's a South Side Chicagoan. | And yet, around this city there's palpable excitement, particularly among Catholics, that the new pontiff is not only American - he's a South Side Chicagoan. |
| "When they said the new Pope was an American, I flipped out, I said 'no way'!" said Mary Simons, a French teacher and nearby resident who brought her mother to see St Mary's. | "When they said the new Pope was an American, I flipped out, I said 'no way'!" said Mary Simons, a French teacher and nearby resident who brought her mother to see St Mary's. |
| "The Church seems like it's getting smaller and smaller in this country," said Ms Simons. "I'm hoping that this will rejuvenate the church and make it bigger and better." | "The Church seems like it's getting smaller and smaller in this country," said Ms Simons. "I'm hoping that this will rejuvenate the church and make it bigger and better." |
| Visitors gazed at the gutted inside of the Pope's former church today after hearing the news from Rome | Visitors gazed at the gutted inside of the Pope's former church today after hearing the news from Rome |
| A small trickle of Catholics, along with a few non-Catholics, made their way to St Mary's on Thursday afternoon as the news spread that Pope Leo XIV – until recently, Cardinal Robert Prevost – had been elected by his fellow cardinals in Rome. | A small trickle of Catholics, along with a few non-Catholics, made their way to St Mary's on Thursday afternoon as the news spread that Pope Leo XIV – until recently, Cardinal Robert Prevost – had been elected by his fellow cardinals in Rome. |
| While some lamented over the poor state of the neighbourhood church – "It's shocking to see this" remarked one visitor - several were close to tears as they considered the humble roots of their new leader. | While some lamented over the poor state of the neighbourhood church – "It's shocking to see this" remarked one visitor - several were close to tears as they considered the humble roots of their new leader. |
| Natalie Payne attended the church and the school associated with it. She hadn't heard the news but just happened to be driving by when she saw the small crowd outside and stopped to take in the moment. | Natalie Payne attended the church and the school associated with it. She hadn't heard the news but just happened to be driving by when she saw the small crowd outside and stopped to take in the moment. |
| "We loved this school. It was a very family oriented place and very accepting of difference," she said. "I was one of the very few black people who attended this school, but I always felt part of the community. It was just a beautiful place." | "We loved this school. It was a very family oriented place and very accepting of difference," she said. "I was one of the very few black people who attended this school, but I always felt part of the community. It was just a beautiful place." |
| Catholics make up about 20% of the US population, according to Pew Research, a number that dropped from 24% at the start of the century. Attendance has fallen and the decline is noticeable in the big industrial cities of the Midwest, in closed schools and shuttered houses of worship like St Mary's. | Catholics make up about 20% of the US population, according to Pew Research, a number that dropped from 24% at the start of the century. Attendance has fallen and the decline is noticeable in the big industrial cities of the Midwest, in closed schools and shuttered houses of worship like St Mary's. |
| Leo XIV grew up in a modest home just a few streets away from here. The Chicago Sun-Times reported his parents – his father was a school administrator and his mother a librarian - bought their home in 1949, paying a mortgage of $42 a month. | Leo XIV grew up in a modest home just a few streets away from here. The Chicago Sun-Times reported his parents – his father was a school administrator and his mother a librarian - bought their home in 1949, paying a mortgage of $42 a month. |
| His father was of French and Italian decent and his mother had Spanish heritage, according to a Vatican news release. | His father was of French and Italian decent and his mother had Spanish heritage, according to a Vatican news release. |
| Watch: "He's one of us" - American Catholics react to first US-born pope | Watch: "He's one of us" - American Catholics react to first US-born pope |
| Who is Robert Prevost, the new Pope? | Who is Robert Prevost, the new Pope? |
| Watch Pope Leo XIV being unveiled as new pontiff | Watch Pope Leo XIV being unveiled as new pontiff |
| Pope Leo's first public address from the Vatican balcony - watch in full | Pope Leo's first public address from the Vatican balcony - watch in full |
| US President Donald Trump calls election of first American pope a 'great honour' | US President Donald Trump calls election of first American pope a 'great honour' |
| St Mary's of the Assumption, Chicago, Illinois | |
| Charleen Burnette, one of the Pope's former classmates, told the BBC she remembers him as a "quiet, kind, gentle, wicked-smart kid". | Charleen Burnette, one of the Pope's former classmates, told the BBC she remembers him as a "quiet, kind, gentle, wicked-smart kid". |
| "He was always the top of our class, all the time," she said, recalling how he always knew he wanted to be a priest and would stay late to sweep and dust St Mary's as a boy. | "He was always the top of our class, all the time," she said, recalling how he always knew he wanted to be a priest and would stay late to sweep and dust St Mary's as a boy. |
| "He vocalised it. He lived it. He exemplified it," she said. | "He vocalised it. He lived it. He exemplified it," she said. |
| In recent years, the Catholic Church has not only weathered declining attendance but also child abuse scandals that continue to resonate today. | In recent years, the Catholic Church has not only weathered declining attendance but also child abuse scandals that continue to resonate today. |
| The Midwest Augustinians, a religious order in Chicago which Pope Leo once led, only published a list of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse in 2024, after years of public pressure. | The Midwest Augustinians, a religious order in Chicago which Pope Leo once led, only published a list of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse in 2024, after years of public pressure. |
| As a cardinal, Prevost was criticised after being accused of allowing a priest facing sex abuse allegations to live in an Augustinian building near an elementary school. The priest was later moved and the religious order says it has tried to be transparent. | As a cardinal, Prevost was criticised after being accused of allowing a priest facing sex abuse allegations to live in an Augustinian building near an elementary school. The priest was later moved and the religious order says it has tried to be transparent. |
| There is a common feeling here that the church has not fully reckoned with the past but despite that, many Catholics here expressed hope for the new Pope's reign. | There is a common feeling here that the church has not fully reckoned with the past but despite that, many Catholics here expressed hope for the new Pope's reign. |
| Outside Holy Name Cathedral, the centre of the Catholic Church in downtown Chicago, workers were hanging bunting to prepare for a special mass on Friday morning. | Outside Holy Name Cathedral, the centre of the Catholic Church in downtown Chicago, workers were hanging bunting to prepare for a special mass on Friday morning. |
| A worker hangs bunting outside of Chicago's main cathedral | A worker hangs bunting outside of Chicago's main cathedral |
| Father Gregory Sakowicz, rector of Holy Name, said he was just about to preside over mass at the cathedral when the news broke. | Father Gregory Sakowicz, rector of Holy Name, said he was just about to preside over mass at the cathedral when the news broke. |
| "When I saw the white smoke on TV, I looked out the window and the sun came out here in Chicago," he said. | "When I saw the white smoke on TV, I looked out the window and the sun came out here in Chicago," he said. |
| "Later, during holy communion someone told me, 'Father, the new Pope is Father Robert Prevost from Chicago.' I was shocked." | "Later, during holy communion someone told me, 'Father, the new Pope is Father Robert Prevost from Chicago.' I was shocked." |
| Fr Sakowicz said Pope Leo XIV "will be his own man" but added that he was confident that he would follow in the footsteps of his predecessor and be "a voice for human rights, a voice for the voiceless, concerned with the poor, and concerned for our mother Earth". | Fr Sakowicz said Pope Leo XIV "will be his own man" but added that he was confident that he would follow in the footsteps of his predecessor and be "a voice for human rights, a voice for the voiceless, concerned with the poor, and concerned for our mother Earth". |
| And in this sport-mad city, there's one question that might nearly match the importance of the new Pope's theological direction – which of the city's baseball teams does he root for? | And in this sport-mad city, there's one question that might nearly match the importance of the new Pope's theological direction – which of the city's baseball teams does he root for? |
| Although there were some reports that he backs the Chicago Cubs, in interviews the new pope's brother has said he cheers for the White Sox – the team with a passionate South Side fan base. Both teams on X, however, have claimed the new Pope's support. | Although there were some reports that he backs the Chicago Cubs, in interviews the new pope's brother has said he cheers for the White Sox – the team with a passionate South Side fan base. Both teams on X, however, have claimed the new Pope's support. |
| "Go White Sox - and go Cubs," said Fr Sakowicz. "There's just a lot of enthusiasm and joy around here. | "Go White Sox - and go Cubs," said Fr Sakowicz. "There's just a lot of enthusiasm and joy around here. |
| "He might be from Chicago, but he will be a pope for the whole world, not just Chicago, not just the US, not just North America - but the entire world." | "He might be from Chicago, but he will be a pope for the whole world, not just Chicago, not just the US, not just North America - but the entire world." |
| With reporting from Nadine Yousif | With reporting from Nadine Yousif |