It would be unthinkable to say that any Catholic in 2025 has had more news coverage, influence or impact than Pope Leo XIV, who was, up until May 8, somewhat unknown to the world as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost.
Since Pope Leo’s election following the Easter Monday death of Pope Francis, 88, the Catholic Church has experienced new vigor, with 69 (the age Prevost was at his election) becoming the new 50. The Holy Father has kept a packed schedule, meeting with dignitaries and heads of state, as well as greeting the masses who have come to Rome throughout the Jubilee Year of hope. He’s embraced Pope Francis’ legacy on poverty, completing his predecessor’s text on the topic. And he went on his first trip, where he made a quiet but undeniable impact on the Church in Turkey and Lebanon.
But he’s also made time for leisure – especially manifested in weekly visits to Castel Gandolfo, where he can take a day off, play tennis and be mostly out of the public eye. He attended the recent Christmas concert at the Vatican, where he sang along with Michael Bublé.
For the U.S. Church, having an American-born and educated pope has been as much of a shot in the arm as it was a shock. It’s created cultural touchpoints out of Chicago pizza and baseball teams. It has allowed the Roman pontiff to speak conversationally and colloquially in Midwestern English with a group of young people over Zoom. It has given us two brothers who aren’t afraid to speak to the media about what their brother, the pope, was like growing up and how he still plays Words with Friends in the middle of sleepless nights. It has given Americans a closer tie to the Vatican in general, one that had somewhat dissipated during the last pontificate.
As we enter into 2026, the Jubilee Year will come to an end and, along with it, the regular events that have kept Pope Leo tethered to the Vatican. Trips to Africa and perhaps the United States are on the horizon. Peace will continue to be a major theme of the pontificate. So will artificial intelligence. For Catholics, and indeed for the whole world, Pope Leo XIV, OSV News’s Catholic of the Year, will continue to be one to watch.
