He is a man formed by his experience in the church of Chicago, especially the south side,’ writes Mark Francis, CSV.

Many sites associated with past popes’ lives have become museums or holy destinations for the faithful. But Pope Leo XIV’s childhood church in Chicago closed years ago.

When 69-year-old Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost appeared on the main balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica for the first time as Pope Leo XIV on May 8, he was cheered loudly by the huge crowd of pilgrims,