by University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Newswise — The election of Cardinal Robert Prevost to the pontificate is notable for the first pope to be a member of the Augustinian friars since 1447. This order, like the Dominicans, Franciscans, and Carmelites, requires vows of poverty, obedience, and chastity, and they are specially dedicated to caring for the poor, to preaching, and to mission work. The last Augustinian friar pope, Eugenius IV, angered political authorities by forbidding the enslavement of the natives of the Canary islands who converted to Christianity. This set the stage for the refusal of later popes to enslave native Americans. Leo XIV's priorities cannot be foreseen with certainty, but the likelihood that he will embody this tradition of pastoral attention to the disadvantaged is considerable. In a period of history in which powerful countries are showing little mercy for migrants, this will almost certainly have an important effect. That Leo took that name further emphasizes his identification with the needs of the poor and the disenfranchised, given the record of his predecessor namesake, Leo XIII, which was to support the interests of the workers in the late nineteenth century.
Credit Newswise.com