Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
¡Habemus Papam! On Thursday, May 8 around noon Miami time, we received with great jubilation the news of the election of Robert Francis cardinal Prevost, who became Pope Leo XIV. Since the announcement of his election there have been all kinds of commentaries and reports on the new pope, so there is not much to add that is not in the public domain. except a couple of points worth highlighting.
His first allocution immediately after his election was magnificent. It was the timeless, yet ever new proclamation of Christ risen from the dead. When the TV cameras offered us a close up of the pontiff, he seemed very moved, overwhelmed. He also showed his devotion to St. Augustine and his great love for the Virgin Mary.
During the homily delivered on Friday morning during Mass concelebrated with the cardinals, he made a strong appeal to personal holiness. He reminded us that the Church is a lighthouse that illuminates the world through the holiness of her members, making a commitment to a daily path of conversion essential in our lives.
He chose the name Leo to show continuity with the social magisterium of Leo XIII (1878-1903), especially his encyclical Rerum Novarum, published in times of rapid changes in the world. The industrial revolution was transforming life in society. Urbanization, together with technological change and internal migrations led to the emergence of the “working class.” In the face of these changes in political, social and economic organization, the “utopian” socialism of Owen, Saint Simon, Fourier and others proposed a humanism without God, whereas the “scientific” socialism of Marx and Engels, whose Communist Manifesto had been published in 1848 promoted “class struggle” as a means to lead humanity to a worldly paradise.
The transformations under way and the ideologies that emerged during the 19th century fueled armed conflicts between nation states, such as the Franco Prussian war or the Ruso Japanese war, anticipating the great conflagrations of the 20th century.
The Church also found itself in a difficult situation. Italian unification had brought about the end of the Papal States, dismantling the temporal power of the pontiffs. Although this helped purify the Church, it also created new challenges, since the Pope was now in a very precarious situation. The Italian state offered a “Law of Guarantees” to protect his freedom, but it was only several decades later, well into the 20th century that the Lateran Treaty ended the “Roman question” establishing Vatican City as a state.
It was in that context that the pontificate of Leo XIII unfolded. In addition to Rerum Novarum, he is remembered for his promotion of the study of the philosophical and theological works of St. Thomas Aquinas, especially as a means to improve the formation of clergy. He also fought against Masonic groups and did not spare any effort to combat Americanism, which threatened the unity of the Church. Additionally, he promoted the Holy Rosary and wrote the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel that pope Francis has asked us to pray regularly.
Benedict XVI explained masterfully the social context at that time whilst acknowledging with great courage the late response of the Church: “The rise of modern industry caused the old social structures to collapse, while the growth of a class of salaried workers provoked radical changes in the fabric of society. The relationship between capital and labor now became the decisive issue—an issue which in that form was previously unknown. Capital and the means of production were now the new source of power which, concentrated in the hands of a few, led to the suppression of the rights of the working classes, against which they had to rebel.
It must be admitted that the Church’s leadership was slow to realize that the issue of the just structuring of society needed to be approached in a new way. There were some pioneers, such as Bishop Ketteler of Mainz († 1877), and concrete needs were met by a growing number of groups, associations, leagues, federations and, in particular, by the new religious orders founded in the nineteenth century to combat poverty, disease and the need for better education. In 1891, the papal magisterium intervened with the Encyclical Rerum Novarum of Leo XIII.”
The encyclical of Leo XIII on the “new things,” published on May 15, 1891, became the cornerstone in a series of luminous documents and papal pronouncements known collectively as “Catholic Social Teaching.”
Pope Leo XIV begins his Petrine ministry in a context marked by rapid transformations in social relations and violent international conflicts. In our times there are also many threats to the unity of the Church. Technological change and the emergence of artificial intelligence present new challenges to the world and the Church. In times when algorithms rule, it seems providential that someone who has studied mathematics occupies the see of Peter.
There are undoubtedly many similarities between the context in the pontificate of both Leos. However, there is one characteristic that is common to both. It is fundamental and transcends any other consideration. Leo XIV highlighted it in his first public appearance when he singled out this old yet ever new constant in universal history: “God loves us, all of us, evil will not prevail. We are all in the hands of God. Without fear, united, hand in hand with God and among ourselves, we will go forward. We are disciples of Christ, Christ goes before us, and the world needs His light. Humanity needs Him like a bridge to reach God and His love.”
Fr. Roberto M. Cid