Here’s What Pope Leo XIV Told Cardinals About His Name Choice

Topline

Pope Leo XIV explained his name choice Saturday, telling Cardinals he sought to uphold the working class struggles championed by Pope Leo XIII and expressing concern over artificial intelligence’s displacement of human jobs.

Pope Leo XIV was voted in on May 8. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

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Key Facts

Pope Leo XIV, whose legal name is Robert Francis Prevost, said he chose his name to align himself with the values of his predecessor, Pope Leo XIII, who defended workers’ rights and fair wages while he reigned from 1878 to 1903.

Pope Leo XIII authored an encyclical that encouraged labor unions and defended the working class following a time of growing industrialization and issues with labor protections.

Pope Leo XIII wrote that the defrauding of wages owed to workers “is a great crime which cries to the avenging anger of Heaven.”

The new pope said the Catholic Church offers its guidance in response to “developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defence of human dignity, justice and labour.”

Pope Leo XIV’s comments come a day after Rev. Art Purcaro, a friend of Leo, told CNN he believed the name choice of the new pope means he “wants to continue the role that Pope Francis” played in championing social justice causes.

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Why Do Popes Change Their Names?

Newly voted-in popes choose their papal names for a wide range of symbolic reasons, but they largely take up new names to indicate what values and direction they will prioritize in their role as pontiff. New popes can use unique names or go the traditional route and name themselves after predecessors, the latter of which Pope Leo XIV did in choosing his name. The new pope’s name harkens back to Pope Leo I, who was known as “Leo The Great.” The first Pope Leo was famous for his diplomatic values and persuading Attila the Hun to not attack Rome.

What Else Was Pope Leo Xiii Known For?

Pope Leo XIII was also known for criticizing “Americanism,” writing in a letter to American bishops that the church is “not able to give approval to those views which, in their collective sense, are called by some ‘Americanism,’” a reference to the concept that the church should be more adaptive to modern ideals. Pope Leo XIII blasted a suggestion that the Catholic Church should change its “teachings more in accord with the spirit of the age and relax some of her ancient severity and make some concessions to new opinions.”

Key Background

Pope Leo XIV was announced as the new pontiff on day two of the papal conclave this week, receiving the two-thirds majority and taking over for Pope Francis, who died of a stroke last month after dealing with respiratory illness. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Pope Leo XIV is the first American pope in the history of the Catholic church and has Creole and Haitian roots. He has also voted in multiple U.S. elections including the 2012, 2014 and 2016 Illinois Republican primaries and the 2024 presidential election. One of his brothers told The New York Times the new pope would likely follow in the footsteps of Pope Francis, saying Pope Leo XIV “has great, great desire to help the downtrodden and the disenfranchised, the people who are ignored.” The new pope said in his first address as pontiff there was a need to create a “church that builds bridges, that is always open to receive everyone.”