By VITA FELLIG and MENACHEM WECKER

(JNS.org) – Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69, a Chicago native with New Orleans roots, was elected as the new pope of the Catholic Church on Thursday. He will be called Leo XIV.

The first U.S.-born pope is also a Peruvian citizen and was previously archbishop of Peru, the Associated Press reported.

Most recently, the new pope was prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, “one of the most important jobs in the Catholic Church,” the AP reported, as “the powerful head of the office that vets bishop nominations from around the world.”

Prevost had “a prominence going into the conclave that few other cardinals have,” it added.

“We have to seek together to be a missionary church. A church that builds bridges and dialogue,” the new pope said in his remarks from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, CNN reported.

U.S. President Donald Trump congratulated the pope and stated that “it is such an honor to realize that he is the first American pope. What excitement, and what a great honor for our country.”

The new pope has connections to the New Orleans Creole community, identified as people of color who did not identify at Black. His maternal grandmother lived in the Seventh Ward of New Orleans and both of his maternal grandparents were married in 1887 at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, which was then located on Annette Street, according to research conducted by Jari Honora, a family historian at The Historic New Orleans Collection.

In a post on his social media account yesterday, May 8, only an hour after the name of the new pope had been revealed, Honora added more information on Prevost’s grandparents and their move to the Windy Cindy. “They left New Orleans and went to Chicago between 1910 and 1912,” he posted.

Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel, congratulated the newly elected pope “on assuming this sacred and momentous responsibility—the first American pope.”

“I send you my warmest wishes from the holy city of Jerusalem,” Herzog stated. “We look forward to enhancing the relationship between Israel and the Holy See, and strengthening the friendship between Jews and Christians in the Holy Land and around the world.”

Herzog wrote that he hopes the new papacy will “be one of building bridges and understanding between all faiths and peoples.”

“May we see the immediate and safe return of the hostages still held in Gaza, and a new era of peace in our region and around the world,” he added.

Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state among several other Trump administration roles, extended “heartfelt congratulations” to the new pope “on his election as the 267th successor to Saint Peter.”

“This is a moment of profound significance for the Catholic Church, offering renewed hope and continuity amid the 2025 jubilee year to over 1 billion faithful worldwide,” Rubio stated. “The papacy carries a sacred and solemn responsibility.”

The secretary added that he and his wife are “united in prayer for his holiness,” and “the United States looks forward to deepening our enduring relationship with the Holy See with the first American pontiff.”

‘Effective manager and a pragmatist’

Rabbi Joshua Stanton, associate vice president for interfaith and intergroup initiatives at the Jewish Federations of North America, told JNS that the newly elected pope has a reputation for being an “effective manager and a pragmatist, who is a lot less outspoken than some of his predecessors.”

“He is the kind of leader who can make significant changes happen quietly and might have already done so in his inaugural address,” according to Stanton, who noted that the new pope mentioned “dialogue” in his inaugural remarks as pope “repeatedly, without specifying with whom he sought dialogue.”

“He might seek to build upon Nostra Aetate and the Second Vatican Accords, which 60 years ago transformed Catholic Jewish relations, and to deepen dialogue with other communities,” according to Stanton, who is also the rabbi of East End Temple, a Reform congregation in Manhattan.

“That is both filled with hope that such an example could be replicated and also a little anxiety-provoking that the church might shift in focus away from its special relationship with Jewish communities,” he said.

Given Chicago’s diversity and its significant Jewish population, Stanton thinks that the new pope “has an intuitive awareness and understanding of Jewish communities and Jewish life.”

“We saw this play out in important ways with Pope Francis, who brought Abraham Skorka,” a prominent rabbi in Buenos Aires, “to the Vatican during his time of transition to the new role and understood Jewish theology because of his time and service in Buenos Aires,” Stanton said.

“The hope is that Pope Leo XIV is going to understand us as we understand ourselves, so that we have to do less translation and less explanation of the basics—not just the Jewish theology, but peoplehood,” he added.

Robert Spitzer and Daniel S. Mariaschin, president and CEO, respectively, of B’nai B’rith International, stated that “we look forward to continuing to work extremely closely with the Catholic Church and community during this new papacy, at a time of manifold common challenges.”

Rabbi Noam Marans, director of interreligious affairs at the American Jewish Committee, stated that “we look forward to a close relationship with Pope Leo XIV as we continue to advance positive Catholic-Jewish relations for the benefit of Catholics, Jews and all of humanity.”

“In this 60th anniversary year of Nostra Aetate, when we celebrate and reflect upon the positive transformation of Catholic-Jewish relations, we stand ready to work with Pope Leo XIV to assure that past successes are affirmed and furthered and new challenges are met with confident collaboration,” Marans stated.

No hot takes

White smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney on Thursday afternoon, signaling the election of a new pope. Crowds in St. Peter’s Square reportedly erupted in cheers as the cardinal electors reached a two-thirds majority after two days of voting on the successor of Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the church, who died at 88 at the Vatican on April 21.

The new pope is an alumnus of Villanova University in Pennsylvania and holds a master of divinity in theology from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, per the Vatican. He also holds a doctorate in theology.

“As the first American pope in history and a proud Chicago native, your appointment marks a momentous occasion for America,” the Israel Heritage Foundation stated. “May your dedication to global peace and ecclesiastical reform inspire boundless hope and unity worldwide.”

Although the new pope has a Twitter account, “he has never tweeted the words ‘Israel,’ ‘Jewish,’ ‘Palestine’ or ‘Gaza,’” wrote Lahav Harkov of Jewish Insider. “So no hot takes on that.” The new pope has shared messages that are critical of Trump on social media.

CCJN editor Alan Smason contributed content to this story.