Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski was one of several bishops in the United States offering thanks for the election of Pope Leo XIV, the former Cardinal Robert F. Prevost from Chicago.
Archbishop Rozanski wrote in a statement May 8: “Give thanks to the Lord for God is good! Habemus Papam! Today, I join Catholics around the world in celebrating the election of Pope Leo XIV. It is clear that the College of Cardinals considered earnestly the crossroads at which we stand, and their selection speaks to the need for communion among all children of God. As we navigate this change of era, we look to Pope Leo XIV for spiritual leadership, pastoral care of the Church and Her people, and steadfast commitment to the most vulnerable. I pray in a special way that Pope Francis’s legacy of compassion for the forgotten continues to inspire us to view the stranger as Christ. I am profoundly grateful to the College of Cardinals for their discernment and selection of this humble servant of God. As Catholics, we pray that our shepherd may be strengthened by the Holy Spirit and that the Church may grow in unity, holiness, and zeal. Let us now, inspired by Pope Leo XIV, be united in our faith to go and make disciples of all nations.”
Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger of Detroit issued a statement on social media. “It is with deep joy and gratitude to God that I join the faithful around the world in celebrating the election of our new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV,” he wrote. “We give thanks not only for his election as the Bishop of Rome but also for his generous and faithful response to the Lord’s call to serve the Church in this profound way.”
Other Catholic leaders also offered statements of welcome to the new pope.
Catholic Relief Services, the official humanitarian agency of the Catholic Church in the U.S., released a statement moments after Pope Leo had delivered his “urbi et orbi” blessing.
CRS president and CEO Sean Callahan said the agency was “overjoyed by the election of Pope Leo XIV” and looks “forward to his leadership and guidance.”
Callahan called the election of the first U.S.-born pope “a momentous occasion for American Catholics,” adding that “as the humanitarian organization for the U.S. Church, CRS is proud to mark his historic election.”
In a May 8 statement, Msgr. Roger J. Landry, National Director of The Pontifical Mission Societies USA, said Pope Leo had “a missionary at heart,” and was one who “served for many years as a priest and bishop bringing Christ and his Gospel to the people in rural Peru.”
The societies, which operate at the service of the pope, consist of four mission societies designated as pontifical by Pope Pius XI in 1922, and serve 1,124 missionary dioceses and territories worldwide.
“We commit ourselves to praying for him (Pope Leo) and his intentions as he continues the work of Peter as a fisher of men throughout the globe,” said Msgr. Landry.
