VILLANOVA, Pa. — For the first time in nearly 2,000 years, the Catholic Church has elected an American pope. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a Chicago native, has taken the papal name of Leo XIV.
The new pope is a 1977 graduate of Villanova University in Pennsylvania, and the university is celebrating the election of its alumnus. We spoke to Villanova alumni, including Greg Woodard from Rochester, about the historic news. “It was a surprise he was from the United States and there was a Villanova connection,” said Woodard.
Woodard, a 1992 Villanova graduate, expressed pride in the values taught at the university, which he believes align with the qualities of a pontiff. “Truth, just having intellectual curiosity, the Augustinians are known for being educators right — unity which is the importance of the community which is always taught in Villanova and then love,” Woodard said.
Patrick Scanlon, a 2024 Villanova graduate, shared his excitement and disbelief. “Unreal, I’m just trying to process this. I don’t think it has really hit. One of the most important people in the world is a Villanova graduate, bleeds blue and white,” said Scanlon.
Scanlon recounted the moment he learned about the news from his brother, also a Villanova graduate. “It’s crazy; my brother texted me — he’s like ‘dude, this guy went to Villanova.’ He’s like ‘there’s no way he can be.’ Then I called my dad, he’s like, yeah. I thought we were talking about a Villanova city in Italy maybe,” Scanlon said.
The Rev. Rob Hagan of Villanova expressed pride in Pope Leo, whom he knew as “Bob,” for his service to the church and missionary work in Peru. “To have seen the life that he has lived and the order and service to our church as a missionary in Peru to work with the poor, to work with the people on the margins,” Hagan said.
Pope Leo has not yet announced if he will follow the progressive direction of his predecessor Pope Francis or shift to more traditional doctrine.
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From Villanova to the Vatican: Pope Leo XIV, a graduate, makes history as first American pontiff; local Villanova alumni: ‘Unreal’ WHEC.com.
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