Pope Leo XIV took to social media for the first time as pontiff on Tuesday, after the Vatican said he plans to maintain "an active social media presence."
Leo, the first American Pope, was elected Thursday to head the Roman Catholic Church.
On Tuesday, he shared photos from his first few days as Pope on Instagram and words taken from his first public address just after his election.
"Peace be with you all! This is the first greeting spoken by the Risen Christ, the Good Shepherd," Leo wrote in an Instagram caption under the account @Pontifex.
"I would like this greeting of peace to resound in your hearts, in your families, and among all people, wherever they may be, in every nation and throughout the world."
As Cardinal Robert Prevost, the Pope used the @drprevost account on X.
He often reposted others' content, and his last original post was on Feb. 13 when he wrote, "Pope Francis' letter, JD Vance's 'ordo amoris' and what the Gospel asks of all of us on immigration" and shared a story from America, The Jesuit Review.
The Dicastery for Communication announced that the official @Pontifex account on X counts a total of 52 million followers across nine languages. The content posted by the late Pope Francis will be archived in a special section of the Holy See's website.
Francis' @Franciscus account on Instagram will remain accessible as a commemorative archive, noted the press release.
Pope Benedict XVI, then 84, was the first Pope to open a social media account, sending the first papal tweet Dec. 12, 2012, on what was then Twitter.
"Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart," wrote the German-born Pope.
Francis used the same Twitter account to post his first tweet: "Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and ask you to continue to pray for me."
Leo, 69, was born Robert Francis Prevost in Illinois. Much of his adult life was spent in Peru, where he has dual citizenship.
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Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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