Skip to playerSkip to main contentSkip to footer
  • today
Pope Leo will follow in Francis' footsteps, says brother

Robert Prevost, the choice of the world's Catholic cardinals to serve as leader of the 1.4-billion-member Church, always knew he wanted to be a priest. It was his fate, his brother, John, told ABC News on May 9, 2025, a day after he became the first American pope. Prevost said the cardinal was a firm supporter of his predecessor's papacy, and especially of the late pontiff's commitment to social justice issues. Prevost said his parents would have felt 'extreme' joy and pride about their son becoming the pope, but acknowledged that the new role came with its own set of challenges.

GMA/ABC/REUTERS

Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe
Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net
Follow us:
Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook
Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram
Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter
DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion

Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital

Check out our Podcasts:
Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify
Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts
Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic
Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer
Stitcher: https://tmt.ph/stitcher
Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein
Soundcloud: https://tmt.ph/soundcloud

#TheManilaTimes
#tmtnews
#popeleoxiv
Transcript
00:00I suppose the most interesting thing is, I think from the time he was five or six years old, he knew this was his fate.
00:07Not that he would be a pope, that he would be a priest.
00:10He knew that from a very young age, and his idea never faltered all through grammar school, high school, college.
00:18He would take our mom's ironing board, cover it over with a tablecloth, and we would go to Mass.
00:24And if you, I don't mean to be disrespectful, but if you remember an old-fashioned candy called Necco, those were the communion wafers.
00:33In my opinion, and he may be different than I think, is you will see kind of a second Pope Francis.
00:40I think he'll kind of follow in Pope Francis' footsteps in terms of some of the policies and the way he conducts himself.
00:48I think that's why I'm saying he's going to follow in Pope Francis' footsteps, because he knows there are the downtrodden.
00:59He knows there are the poor.
01:00He knows there are the disenfranchised, the people who don't have a voice.
01:04And so I think he will be looking out for that, because that's where he spent so many years with those people who he worked with
01:11and knows what their needs may be, and maybe he can do something to help them.
01:15Extreme joy, extreme pride, and then I think eventually in would come worry as to how Robert is going to handle this,
01:26because it's a heavy weight on his shoulders.
01:31He's got the task of trying to bring the world's Catholics together, because I think we're splitting apart quickly.
01:38And maybe he can do something to bring it back.
01:41Well, Sox fan is Southside, Cubs fan is Northside.
01:47Our mother's family was Northside, and that's where the Cubs came in.
01:53Our father was St. Louis Cardinals, so how Rob picked Sox, one only knows, but that's where he was.
02:01So I don't know where it came that he was a Cubs fan.
02:04So yes, I did want to straighten that out.
02:07I'm sure it's important for the country to know that.

Recommended