New Pope Leo, pride of Chicago, will keep climate change among church's priorities
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The white smoke blew out over St. Peter’s Square in Rome and tens of thousands cheered as the world greeted Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost, on Thursday and immediately began the game of speculating on what his papacy would look like on key issues and whether it would follow Pope Francis’s legacy.
Judging from Pope Leo’s record, the Chicago-born, first-American pope will follow in the steps of the late Pope Francis and keep climate change among the top priorities of the Catholic Church, especially because of its impact on the poor. He has called for the church to turn its teachings on how man and nature interact into actions to address the effect of evolving technology on the world, according to reports from Vatican News and the College of Cardinals.
Part of the pope’s remit as leader of the world’s one billion Catholics is to speak truth to power and keep the world’s leaders on the path to the church’s teachings to help the poor. One of the early touch points people will look for, especially Catholics in America, is how Pope Leo handles President Donald Trump, who is vehemently against any measures to fight climate change and views it as a hoax.
As a fellow American, a lot of responsibility will be thrust upon him, not only by his followers in Chicago but by those in South America who were introduced to him during his decades serving in Peru. Prevost, 69, only came to Rome two years ago, to run the office that selects bishops. He was viewed as an outsider who became an insider.
He will have big shoes to fill.
Pope Francis lifted addressing climate change to the top priorities he wanted the world to face up to, calling it a “moral and social issue” that ultimately affects the poor the most, demanding the attention of the church. He had tried to attend the United Nations’ annual climate summit a few years ago, COP28 in Dubai, but was too frail, so instead sent a video message to the delegates.
The church has a 2,000-year history of questioning science over faith, but with regards to climate change, Pope Francis was clear that the science must be observed and followed as a warning. Pope Leo, at least based upon his words to date, will be a welcome new leader by those who want the church to move more quickly into the modern era.
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Words to live by . . . .
“To leave the world better than you found it, sometimes you have to pick up other people’s trash.” — Bill Nye.
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