Skip next section Germany’s Merz congratulates the new pope
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Germany’s Merz congratulates the new pope
New German Chancellor congratulated “His Holiness Pope Leo XIV” on his election to head the Catholic Church.
Merz, who is Catholic, said in a statement that the people of Germany look to the new pontificate “with confidence and positive expectations.”
“Through your office, you provide hope and guidance to millions of believers worldwide during these times of great challenges. For many people, you are an anchor for justice and reconciliation,” the chancellor said.
Merz wished the new pope “much strength, health and God’s blessing.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8KK
Skip next section Trump hails ‘great honor’ in election of first US pope
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Trump hails ‘great honor’ in election of first US pope
US President has congratulated Pope Leo XIV on becoming the new leader of the Catholic Church, and its first-ever head from the United States.
“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope,” the president wrote on his Truth social media platform. “It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country.”
Trump added that he hoped to one day meet Leo.
“I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV,” he wrote. “It will be a very meaningful moment!”
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8KL
Skip next section Who is Pope Leo XIV?
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Who is Pope Leo XIV?
Pope Leo XIV, whose birth name is Robert Francis Prevost, was born in Chicago on September 14, 1955.
In 1977, he entered the Order of Saint Augustine. Prevost studied at the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago, receiving a diploma in theology.
At the age of 27, he was sent to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University (Angelicum).
His order then sent him to Peru as a missionary, and later he alternated between various positions in the United States and Peru.
Prevost previously headed the diocese of Chiclayo in Peru and was second vice president of the Peruvian bishops’ conference.
Pope Francis got to know him in the South American country and in 2023 appointed him the head of the Dicastery for Bishops, making him a cardinal.
The Dicastery for Bishops is effectively the personnel department of the Catholic Church. In that role, he has been responsible for the appointment of bishops worldwide for the past two years.
At the same time, Prevost was president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
Though Prevost has not often spoken in public, he garnered some attention for his quiet style and support for Francis, especially for his approach to matters of social justice.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8Iv
Skip next section Pope Leo XIV makes first address
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Pope Leo XIV makes first address
Pope Leo XIV has made his first address to the world’s 1.4 billion from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
“Peace be with you all,” Leo XIV told the crowd that had gathered at the Vatican.
Leo XIV said he was an Augustinian priest, but added that he was above all a Christian, and a bishop.
“So we can all walk together,” he said.
The newly-elected pontiff urged people to “build bridges through dialogue, through encounter, to come together as one people, always in peace.”
He also payed homage to his predecessor, .
Leo XIV addressed the crowed first in Italian before switching to Spanish, recalling the many years he spent as a missionary in where he eventually became archbishop of Chiclayo.
The 66-year-old is the Catholic Church’s first leader from North America in its 2,000-year history.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8Gf
Skip next section Cardinal Robert Prevost announced as Pope Leo XIV
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Cardinal Robert Prevost announced as Pope Leo XIV
The Vatican has announced that American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost will lead the Catholic Church as Pope Leo XIV.
Leo XIV becomes the first-ever US pope.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8GP
Skip next section Pope elected in fourth ballot, media report
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Pope elected in fourth ballot, media report
According to the Italian news agency Ansa, the new pope was elected in the fourth round of voting.
The conclave of 133 cardinals to elect the successor to the late began early Wednesday evening.
There was one unsuccessful ballot on Wednesday. Three more ballots were held on Thursday. A two-thirds majority is required.
For most of the past century, the conclave took between three and 14 ballots to elect a pope.
John Paul I, the pope who reigned for 33 days in 1978, was elected on the fourth ballot. His successor, John Paul II, took eight. Francis was elected on the fifth ballot in 2013.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8F8
Skip next section St. Peter’s Square erupts with joyous applause
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
St. Peter’s Square erupts with joyous applause
Thousands of Catholics as well as curious onlookers in cheered and applauded as white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel, signalling the election of a new pope.
People had gathered from around the world since the conclave began Wednesday.
The crowd shouted “Hallelujah!” and “Viva il papa!” upon seeing the news that a pope had been elected.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” said one onlooker who had traveled from Belfast to Rome for the occasion.
“I’m not an overly religious person but, being here with all these people just blew me away,” they told the AFP news agency.
Among the cardinals who were considered were representatives from Europe, Africa and Asia.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u8Bs
Skip next section White smoke. What happens next?
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
White smoke. What happens next?
At the conclave, once a candidate receives and accepts a two-thirds majority, or 89 votes, he chooses a papal name and enters the “Room of Tears” to don his papal vestments.
Minutes later, from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, he is introduced to the world with the proclamation in Latin, “Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum: Habemus Papam!” (“I bring you tidings of great joy: We have a Pope!”).
This will be immediately followed by the revelation of his baptismal name, in Latin, followed by the papal name the new pontiff has chosen.
The first sign of the new pope’s priorities will be in the name he chooses. For example, a Francis II might signal a new pope’s embrace of Francis’ legacy of prioritizing the poor and marginalized, while a Pius would suggest a traditionalist restoration.
After a short speech, the new pope will give his blessing for the first time.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u85I
Skip next section White smoke billows from Sistine Chapel chimney
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
White smoke billows from Sistine Chapel chimney
White smoke has emerged from a chimney in the Sistine Chapel in the .
The smoke signifies that the 133 cardinals inside the chapel have elected a new pope to lead the .
A crowd of faithful erupted into cheers at St. Peter’s Square as they watched the smoke pour from the chimney.
But the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics still have to wait for an official announcement from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica to learn who the new pope is.
will be announced later when a top cardinal utters the words “Habemus papam” — Latin for “We have a pope.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4u84H
Skip next section Cardinals continue deliberations to elect new pope
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Cardinals continue deliberations to elect new pope
Cardinals are still in the Sistine Chapel on Thursday afternoon after a lunch break to elect a successor to Pope Francis. The 133 cardinals could have two more rounds of voting on Thursday.
With no candidate so far securing the necessary two-thirds majority, or 89 votes, the waiting continues to find out who will become the new leader of the Catholic Church.
Despite the disappointment after black smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel chimney earlier in the morning, many in St. Peter’s Square hope a new pontiff could be chosen soon — perhaps as early as Thursday afternoon’s fourth or fifth ballot.
“I hope by this evening, returning to Rome, I’ll find white smoke,” said Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the 91-year-old dean of the College of Cardinals. He presided over the Mass before the conclave but is not taking part in the balloting because only cardinals under 80 are eligible to cast votes.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u7vo
Skip next section Black smoke emerges from Sistine Chapel
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Black smoke emerges from Sistine Chapel
Black smoke has emerged from the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican, meaning that no pope has been elected in the latest round of ballots.
Two more rounds of voting are scheduled for Thursday, with the final ballot of the day to be cast by 7 p.m. local time (1700 GMT).
https://p.dw.com/p/4u6I3
Skip next section Worshippers share hopes about new pope
05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Worshippers share hopes about new pope
Strong moral values, an open heart, or the first-ever Filipino pope?
DW’s Jack Parrock was at the Vatican to ask just a few of the world’s 1.4 billion Roman Catholics what their hopes when it comes to the .
https://p.dw.com/p/4u5iy
Skip next section Welcome back to our updates05/08/2025May 8, 2025
Welcome back to our updates
Welcome back to our live updates from the papal conclave, where 133 cardinals are voting for a successor to .
Cardinals have returned to the Sistine Chapel to resume voting for a new pope after the first failed to decide a winner — an outcome signaled by billowing black smoke through the chapel chimney on Wednesday evening.
Crowds of pilgrims and tourists in St Peter’s Square were looking toward the Sistine Chapel on Thursday to watch for white smoke as a second day of voting inside.
The papal electors celebrated Mass together in the Pauline Chapel before meeting for the voting a few meters away in the Sistine Chapel, starting at 9:15 a.m. local time. Voting takes place twice, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
If no candidate achieves the required two-thirds majority in the first round of voting in the morning or afternoon, a second voting round immediately follows.Afterward, a column of smoke rises from the chimney in the roof of the Sistine Chapel, announcing the outcome.
If the smoke that rises is black, voting continues. White smoke announces the successful election of the new pope and that could come if the decision is made in the first round of voting in the morning or afternoon.
The required number of votes would be 89 from the 133 cardinals. Presiding over the conclave is the highest-ranking cardinal bishop under the age of 80, the 70-year-old Italian Pietro Parolin.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u5ZV
Skip next section Cardinals fail to agree on next pope in first vote
05/07/2025May 7, 2025
Cardinals fail to agree on next pope in first vote
Black smoke rose from the Vatican on Wednesday, signaling that Catholic cardinals — as expected — did not reach a decision on who should lead the church as the next pope.
Thousands of people gathered in St. Peter’s Square needed to be patient as it took longer than expected for the smoke to billow from the chimney, more than three hours after cardinals began the conclave.
The next vote is to take place on Thursday.
With that, DW will pause its live coverage of the papal conclave.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u4Qg
Skip next section Campaigners release pink smoke to demand women’s ordination
05/07/2025May 7, 2025
Campaigners release pink smoke to demand women’s ordination
As cardinals, all men, started the conclave, a group of campaigners released pink smoke in a park overlooking St. Peter’s Basilica to demand that women be allowed to seek ordination.
“We are saying to the cardinals, you cannot keep ignoring 50% of the Catholic population. You cannot go into a locked room and discuss the future of the Church without half of the Church,” Miriam Duignan, one of the campaigners, told the AFP news agency.
“Whoever they elect needs to be brave enough to properly tackle the question of women’s inclusion, because so far it has not been, even by Pope Francis,” said Duignan.
The pink smoke was a play on the smoke released from the Sistine Chapel chimney to indicate whether a new pope has been elected.
Although women have started to take senior lay roles in the global Catholic Church, especially under Pope Francis’s papacy, they remain excluded from the priesthood.
Kate McElwee, executive director of the Women’s Ordination Conference campaign group, described this exclusion as an injustice and a “crisis” for the Catholic Church.
“While the world may wait for white smoke or black smoke, we send up pink smoke as our hope that the Church may someday welcome women as equals,” she said.
https://p.dw.com/p/4u4KG
The post US Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost to lead Catholic Church as Pope Leo XIV appeared first on Deutsche Welle.
