Robert Francis Prevost elected as the first American pope
The Daily Article
The Denison Forum
4.9 • 576 Ratings
🗓️ 8 May 2025
⏱️ 8 minutes
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Summary
At 11:08 a.m., Central Daylight Time, white smoke emerged from above the Sistine Chapel, announcing to the world that a new pope has been elected to lead the Roman Catholic Church. A long list of candidates had been in speculation for days. Betting platforms had an Italian cardinal in the lead, with a Filipino candidate second. None had an American high on their list, as no American has ever been selected as pope.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Greetings and welcome to this special edition of Denison Forum's Daily Article podcast. I'm Chris Elkins, |
| 0:08.7 | narrating this special edition daily article written by our co-founder, CEO and theologian, Dr. Jim Denison. |
| 0:16.4 | At 11.08 a.m. Central Daylight Time, white smoke emerged from above the Sistine Chapel, announcing |
| 0:23.9 | to the world that a new pope had been elected to lead the Roman Catholic Church. |
| 0:28.7 | A long list of candidates had been in speculation for days. |
| 0:32.2 | Betting platforms had an Italian cardinal in the lead with a Filipino candidate second. None had an American high on |
| 0:39.6 | their list, as no American has ever been selected as Pope. Until today, Robert Francis Provost |
| 0:46.7 | has been elected the 267th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, taking the name Pope Leo the 14th. It was stirring to watch |
| 0:55.9 | his introduction to the massive crowds in St. Peter's Square and to hear the Chicago native speak |
| 1:01.2 | in perfect Italian and Spanish. Provost was previously a missionary in Peru, working as a teacher |
| 1:07.8 | and parish priest. In 23, Pope Francis brought him to the Vatican to head the |
| 1:13.2 | powerful office that vets bishop nominations from around the world. As a result, he was highly |
| 1:19.1 | prominent going into the conclave, but as an American, he was thought to be a long shot for the papacy at best. |
| 1:25.9 | Pope Leo was born on September the 14th, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois. |
| 1:31.3 | He is also a citizen of Peru, where he served as a missionary and then an archbishop. |
| 1:36.3 | He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University in 1977, |
| 1:42.3 | then took his solemn vows and studied theology at Catholic |
| 1:46.2 | Theological Union of Chicago in 1982. |
| 1:49.6 | He earned degrees in divinity and canon law, including a doctorate from the Pontifical College |
| 1:55.3 | of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. |
| 1:57.7 | Pope Leo told the Vatican News in October 24, a bishop is called to serve. His authority |
| 2:03.9 | is service. He added that a bishop is not supposed to be a little prince sitting in his kingdom, |
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