One year with Pope Leo XIV

One year after Pope Leo XIV’s election to the papacy, Catholics have had the opportunity to reflect on his unique personality and his special regard for both evangelization and outreach to the poor. The first American pope has sparked interest among both Catholics and non-Catholics, creating a unique opportunity for the faithful to show the joy of their Christian faith and invite others to go deeper.

Leo XIV’s election on May 8, 2025 put the man formerly known as Cardinal Robert Prevost on a global stage. His status as the first American to be elected pope has had an impact.

“An American is, for the first time, our pope, the successor of Peter, and so I think there's a great deal of joy and excitement about that fact all by itself,” Bishop John Folda told New Earth April 15.

“People are paying attention to what he does and says because he’s an American,” the bishop continued. “People feel, I think, a certain affinity or kinship with Pope Leo.”

“I hate to use the word ‘relatable,’ but he is relatable to us in a way that perhaps popes have not ben in the past,” he said. “Not because of any fault of theirs, it’s just difference of nationality and culture.”

Hannah Brockhaus, Deputy Vatican Editor at EWTN News, also spoke with New Earth about the first American Pope.

“Being an American has helped Pope Leo be heard in the United States, not only because he’s a native English speaker, but because he understands the culture and political context of the country,” Brockhaus said in an April 15 email. “People can’t dismiss him as an outsider.”

“At the same time, his ability in various languages, including Spanish and French, his experience traveling around the world as prior general of the Augustinian Order, (and) living in Peru when he was bishop there, have all given him a perspective and approach that have garnered him a huge amount of respect both from ordinary Catholics and world leaders,” she added.

Brockhaus, who hails from Nebraska, has been working in Rome on the Vatican beat for almost a decade. She has firsthand experience of many papal audiences and events.

“During the first year of his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV has received an enthusiastic response from pilgrims and tourists to the Vatican,” she said. “He does not have the same charisma and big personality as his immediate predecessor, but he has warmed up to crowds and has an unpretentious way of engaging with those who have come to see him that is disarming and genuine. He has a charming smile and a good sense of humor.”

“Those who have been fortunate enough to have one-on-one encounters with Pope Leo all say that he gave them his full attention, whether for one minute or ten, and never felt rushed to move on,” Brockhaus reported.

During Pope Leo’s first year, she has noticed “a change in tenor and tempo” in papal life.

“For one, for much of his first year, Pope Leo has made it a habit to spend one day out of every week at his residence in Castel Gandolfo, outside of Rome,” said Brockhaus. “He also spent time there resting in the summer. While his schedule, as any pope’s, is full, it doesn’t feel frantically so, as it sometimes felt under Pope Francis. Things appear organized and systematic.”

“Pope Leo XIV strikes me as a very thoughtful person, who seeks to listen and to understand before speaking,” she continued. “With the start of 2026, I think we are beginning to see more and more what a Leo papacy will look like, and that includes a pope who is quiet, but willing to speak clearly in defense of the Gospel, who is strong on governance and canon law, and who cares deeply about evangelization and the formation of Catholics. His media savvy is also apparent.”

Bishop Folda too reflected on Pope Leo’s public persona.

“He strikes me as being very at peace with his new role and responsibility in the Church, this ministry, as Pope. He seems confident. He seems serene. He's articulate,” the bishop said. “We’re still learning about him, but it's interesting how, in his own way, he's already putting his own imprint on the role of the papacy, which is natural. I think that's true for any new pope.”

Bishop Folda pointed to Pope Leo’s Oct. 4, 2025 apostolic exhortation “Dilexit te”, calling it his “first significant document.” In the bishop’s words, this document “reiterated the importance of the church's ministry and outreach to the poor,” a point of continuity with Pope Francis and previous popes.

The document is about the “option for the poor” and the love of the poor, the bishop continued. It recognizes “the fact that the poor are part of who we are as a Church” and that “they deserve our attention and our care.”

“That’s been significant, in terms of his teaching magisterium,” said the bishop, using the formal word for the pope’s authoritative body of teaching.

As for non-Catholic reaction to Leo, Bishop Folda thinks that non-Catholics are “very interested in Pope Leo because he is an American.” His election has brought interest in the Catholic Church “in a way that maybe we have not seen before.”

Catholics should respond to this interest with “gratitude,” the bishop advised.

“We need to live our faith with joy, with a spirit of welcome, and with a willingness to reach out, because people do have questions,” he said.

“His election has led people to ask questions about the Catholic Church in a way that maybe they didn't have before,” he said. “We have to be ready and willing to answer whatever questions they might have, and welcome them to learn more.”

In response to the Leo papacy, the bishop recommended Catholics show a spirit of invitation, welcoming and outreach.

“Most of it, I think, begins and ends with just living our faith joyfully and expressing our unity with Pope Leo. I think that all by itself sends a very, very strong message to our own faithful, but to non-Catholics as well,” the bishop said. “Both Catholics and non-Catholics are fascinated and want to learn more about him, so that's happening. It’s taking time.”

Pope Leo’s election to the papacy came more than two weeks after Pope Francis’ death on April 21, 2025 at the age of 88. Pope Francis, who served as pontiff for 12 years, was the first pope to come from the Americas and the first to come from the Society of Jesus.

Bishop Folda reflected on Francis’ papacy, one year after its end.

“I think there was great affection for Pope Francis,” he told New Earth. “He had a very human touch. There was a certain down-to-earth character to him that people loved and admired.”

“Obviously, he had a great concern for the poor, as he would say, the ‘people on the margins.’ I think that will be his legacy in a lot of ways: to always remind us of the need to reach out to those that are perhaps on the peripheries, on the margins, both materially, but also spiritually. To reach out of our comfort zone, you might say,” the bishop continued. “Every pope does challenge us in that way, but Pope Francis did so, I think, in a very, very vivid and colorful way.”

“He had great emphasis on the call to evangelization. His first major teaching document was on what was called the Joy of the Gospel, ‘Evangelii Gaudium.’ It was on the church's call to evangelize,” said the bishop.

“I think we'll be continuing to unpack what he had to say. And Pope Leo has carried it forward,” Bishop Folda said. “It's not like that door was closed when Pope Francis passed away. The call to evangelize, the call to go out into the world with our faith is just as real now as it was the day he was elected.”