Spokane Catholics rejoice for America’s first pope

Word of the new pope’s ties to Chicago spread quickly, and with bated breath, some Spokane residents hoped to hear Cardinal Blase Cupich’s name called. Cupich served as bishop of Spokane from 2010 to 2014, when he was tapped by Pope Francis to become Archbishop of Chicago.

But the 133-member College of Cardinals opted for another with Chicago ties: 69-year-old Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was raised in the Windy City before going on to lead a life of international ministry. The first American selected for the papacy took the name Pope Leo XIV, greeting the crowds at the Vatican Thursday with “peace be with all you.”

A few hours after white smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel to signify the selection of a new pope, Spokane Catholics gathered for midday Mass at their respective parishes.

“It’s a wonderful day for the Catholic Church, for all Christians, for all people in the world,” said Fred Costello, who attended noon Mass Thursday at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes in downtown Spokane.

He never thought there would be an American pope in his lifetime and said it feels especially resonant with the United States approaching its 250th anniversary next year.

“I just think it’s a message sent from above and from the church that our country will unite and bring everyone together,” Costello said.

Mary Ellen Spink and Thomas Spink, parishioners at St. Charles Catholic Church, shared Costello’s amazement at the selection of a cardinal from America.

“I’d say that probably we’re a pretty prosperous church, and he’s going to look for us to be supportive of the church’s mission, to be helpful and financially supportive,” Mary Ellen said.

Although he hails from the U.S., Tom said Pope Leo seems more like a global citizen, noting the newly minted pope’s education in Rome, the more than two decades he spent serving in Peru and recent leadership of the office that selects and manages bishops globally.

“He has perspective of what the bishops around the world have to deal with,” Tom said. “I don’t know if there’s too many Cardinals that have ever had that experience.”

Mary Ellen said the church is a “fine balance between magisterium, sacraments, and mission,” and she expects Pope Leo to be able to manage that balance amid the deliberations within the church. Tom added that Pope Leo has firsthand experience in all three regards, as well as holding a mathematics degree from Villanova University and a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

“I think that’s wise to have a pope that has a science background in this day and age,” Tom said.

Pope Leo is assuming the earthly reins of the Catholic Church at an interesting point in its multimillennium history. It’s yet to be seen if he will embrace his predecessor’s progressive efforts, which polarized some Catholics, who preferred the more conservative, traditional approach of those who came before Francis.

Tom does not expect Pope Leo to follow as closely in Francis’ footsteps as some may expect.

“He has a view of South American liberation theology because he lived down there, but he also has a doctorate in canon law, which is different than Francis,” Tom said. “So, my guess is he’s more of a lawyer-mathematician, which is probably appropriate for this day and age, where the church is right now.”

There’s also a looming financial crisis that Pope Leo will have to contend with sooner, rather than later. The Vatican’s pension fund had a $708 million shortfall as of 2022, which experts believe has ballooned in the years since. There’s also a $94 million shortfall in the Vatican budget as of mid-2024, as reported by Reuters.

“Francis has kind of given him a mess,” Tom said. “Yes, Francis had a mess given to him, but it’s been 12 years, and the mess isn’t cleaned up.”

Kevin Brown, lecturer and director of the Religious Studies graduate program at Gonzaga University, said that based on Pope Leo’s first address Thursday in St. Peter’s Square, his theological leadership appears poised to continue the path of Pope Francis, especially in the areas of climate change and the need for global solidarity.

Prevost’s choice for his papal name further indicates interest in Catholic social teaching, Brown said. The last Pope Leo – Leo XIII – in the late 1800s introduced this teaching for the church to address matters of economic justice, war and peace.

Brown said that the relatively quick conclave suggests the cardinals saw Pope Leo as a consensus-building candidate capable of meeting the needs of the moment.

“I think that the cardinals were looking for someone who would be willing to take a more vocal moral stance in the world, along the lines of Francis,” Brown said.

While Pope Leo seems more reserved in his personality than Pope Francis, he has shown willingness to stand up to American politicians. Earlier this year, he posted on X a critique of Vice President JD Vance, who is a Catholic convert, about comments Vance made about “the order of love,” a theological concept Vance interpreted as prioritizing love for in-groups before out-groups.

“JD Vance is wrong,” Pope Leo posted in February. “Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.”

Pope Francis in February wrote a letter to the bishops of the United States, in response to the Trump administration’s mass deportations and clarifying the order of love as a meditation on the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Pope Leo also reposted a criticism of Donald Trump and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele joking in the Oval Office about deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia to a prison in El Salvador.

“He’s definitely someone who would be critical of particular policies of the current U.S. administration,” Brown said.

And while it is notable that Pope Leo is American born, he spent much of his adult life as a missionary in Peru and also has Peruvian citizenship.

“That indicates that the cardinals would have seen him, yes, as American born, but also as someone who gave up some level of privilege to minister amongst the poor,” Brown said.

During his speech, Pope Leo didn’t use English, and the only time he deviated from Italian or Latin was to address the Peruvians he had worked with in Spanish.

“He isn’t necessarily going to see himself as beholden to anyone in the United States, but is going to be beholden first and foremost to the gospel,” Brown said.

Pope Leo has talked about a need to integrate women more into church leadership, though that doesn’t necessarily mean ordination, Brown said.

There remains some question where he will land on LGBTQ issues. In the past, Pope Leo denounced what he called modern culture’s sympathy for the “homosexual lifestyle” and “alternative families,” but his speech Thursday showed a different tone more in line with Pope Francis’ approach toward making the church inclusive.

He talked about “building a bridge” with marginalized groups. “Building a Bridge,” is the title of a well-known book by American Jesuit priest James Martin about how the Catholic church can be more welcoming to LGBTQ people.

“I don’t know if that was an explicit allusion to it, but as an American, I don’t see how he couldn’t have been aware of that connection,” Brown said.

Editor’s note: A photo purporting to show a Washington State University flag flying in Vatican Square after Pope Leo X1V was named pope was not taken in the aftermath of Pope Leo XIV being named pope. The photo has been removed from this story and a reference to the flag flying in Vatican Square on Thursday was removed from the story.