Pope Leo XIV has a "real quiet, personable demeanor to him that I think people are going to find refreshing," says Fr. Patrick Flanagan, chair of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Saint John's University.
"His Augustinian confreres and people in the Vatican, even his own family who call him Rob, find in him a sincere, faithful, and loyal brother," Flanagan said Saturday during an appearance on Newsmax's "The Count."
"And I think that's pretty remarkable. And that's what I think the church is going to find in Cardinal Leo, the 14th," he added.
"And I think that's going to be a real plus to the growth of the church, as well as the growth of vocations which the church surely needs."
The cardinal electors of the Catholic Church on Thursday elected Chicago native Robert Francis Prevost, 69, as the first American-born Pope to lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics.
Prevost chose Leo XIV as his papal name.
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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