Photo from Reuters

By AJ Alarcon

On Thursday, May 8 (Friday, May 9, Manila time), Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica as the newly elected pope, taking the papal name Leo XIV.

The 69-year-old newly elected pontiff is the 267th leader of the Roman Catholic Church and, notably, the first American to ascend to the papacy.

In his first public address as Pope Leo XIV, he urged everyone to “build bridges,” and “come together as one people, always in peace,” through dialogue and encounter.

He then paid homage to his predecessor, the late Pope Francis, stating, “The Pope, who blessed Rome, gave his blessing to the entire world that morning of Easter.”

“Allow me to follow up on that blessing,” he added.

The secret papal conclave began on Wednesday afternoon with 133 cardinal electors aged under 80 out of 252 cardinals from around the world assembled at the Sistine Chapel to elect the next pope.

Under a news blackout, the voting proceeded until a candidate secured the required two-thirds majority, with the chimney smoke serving as the only public signal of the outcome.

On Wednesday evening, black smoke billowed from the chapel, indicating that the first ballots had failed to elect a new pope. 

However, on Thursday afternoon, white smoke rose from the chapel chimney, signifying that a new leader of the Catholic Church had been chosen after two days of voting.

Traditionally, the papal inauguration is held within a week of the election, with a solemn Mass attended by global religious and political leaders.