28 May May 2025 Reflection – Thomas Merkel SJ

Habemus Papam!

The Conclave, the gathering of Cardinals under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, elected Cardinal Robert Prevost as the new Pope, who took the name Leo XIV. As I learned this news in the Nashville airport, like most people, I was surprised to learn that the new Pope had American roots. As a member of the Augustinians, he served as a missionary in Peru, as a Provincial and as the Vicar General of their religious order. He also led the Dicastry for Bishops under Pope Francis.

Choosing the name Leo XIV, his name harkens back to Pope Leo the Great (440-461) as well as more recently to Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903). During his papacy, Pope Leo the Great proclaimed that Jesus was fully human and fully divine. Pope Leo XIII ushered in Catholic Social Teaching and wrote Rerum Novarum (1891) in which he critiques socialism and unrestrained capitalism, noting that economic systems must work toward a common good and the welfare of all of humanity.

Pope Leo XIV will have engagement with the Pontifical Gregorian University. We pray for him and ask that he would have the help of the Holy Spirit in leading the universal, evangelical Catholic Church.

Thomas J. Merkel, SJ
President, Gregorian University Foundation