Classmate, Ohio Dominican sister both react to new pope ...Middle East

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A central Ohio woman said she couldn’t believe it when the new pope was announced. 

Thursday’s election of Robert Prevost – now Pope Leo XIV – was extra special for Marie Sweeney, a proud graduate of Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, the same city where Pope Leo XIV was born, and also the same Catholic graduate school he attended and graduated from just one year after she did. 

Sweeney's day started out as any other -- she had just gotten home from running errands when she got a text from a friend saying there was a new pope. 

That’s when she went inside and turned on the television. She read about the various possibilities for the next pope, and knew his name sounded familiar, but as his time in Chicago was reiterated after Thursday’s announcement, that’s when it clicked. He attended CTU with her, the same school she said shaped her adult life. 

Sure enough, Sweeney dug out her yearbook from more than 40 years ago, and on page 29, just five pages before her picture, was Robert Prevost. 

She said their education at CTU was rooted in experiencing new cultures, getting to know people and their stories and beliefs, and making connections. She’s confident the school prepared Prevost well to take over for Pope Francis and his mission to make the Catholic church more inclusive. 

"Pope Francis' whole move to have the church act in a more, they used the word ‘synodality,’ but in a collaborative way basically, and not have judgment, but be open to diversity, is exactly what he was taught,” Sweeney said. “That was exactly what he was taught." 

She was thrilled to hear Pope Leo talk about that mission as he addressed worshippers for the first time as pope on Thursday. 

Pope Leo’s message also resonated at Columbus’ Ohio Dominican University. Sister Gemma Doll said she was excited and very pleased with Pope Leo’s announcement, looking forward to see what he will do leading the church. 

Doll said the new pope will start choosing his close associates and begin to make his mark in the church. She hopes he’ll continue to raise up the leadership of women in the church because she believes the church needs more women leaders.  

Before his election as pope, Prevost had three women join him at a very high level, and they were granted votes on the selection of bishops in the world for the first time in history.

Doll believes the quick election of Pope Leo – two votes over the two days of the conclave – is because he worked closely with Pope Francis. 

“So they both were, you know, spent a lot of time in Latin America, and I think they bring that real pastoral care of the people and that comfort of being on the margins with people who are poor and, and oppressed and people with struggles,” she said. 

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