Perchance, the answer to the unfolding papacy is in the name. Names are not coincidental, they are incidental.
The last Pope to bear Leo was Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci who upon election as the Pope took the name Pope Leo XIII (1878–1903). Pope Leo XIII stands as a pivotal figure in the modern history of the papacy, forging a path that redefined the Church’s role in a rapidly industrializing and politically shifting world.
His pontificate is a template that can serve as a meaningful framework of what to anticipate from the mission of Robert Francis who has taken the name Pope Leo XIV.
Pope Leo XIII was a champion of Social Justice evident in his Rerum Novarum, a Magna Carta which is his most enduring legacy. Written in 1891, the encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the condition of the working classes. At a time when Marxism and laissez-faire capitalism were polarizing societies, Leo charted a “third way” grounded in Catholic social teaching. He defended the rights of laborers to unionize, the sanctity of private property, and the moral obligations of employers- laying the foundation for the Church’s ongoing engagement with economic justice.
The new Pope Leo could be expected to revisit this model, especially in addressing 21st-century challenges like automation, economic inequality, and climate-linked labor dislocations.
Secondly, Pope Leo XIII was an advocate for intellectual engagement and Thomistic revival. He reignited Catholic intellectual life by promoting the study of St. Thomas Aquinas, notably through his 1879 encyclical Aeterni Patris. By endorsing a synthesis of faith and reason, he encouraged the Church not to retreat from modern philosophy and science but to engage it critically and constructively.
If Pope Leo XIV follows this legacy, one might anticipate a renewed emphasis on intellectual formation, dialogue with contemporary thought, and a revival of robust theological education.
Thirdly, Leo XIII was a diplomatic modernizer of the Papacy. Navigating a post-Papal States world, Leo XIII skillfully repositioned the Holy See as a global moral voice. He pursued diplomatic relations with modern states, emphasized the Church’s supranational mission, and engaged with both secular governments and other Christian traditions. His vision of the papacy as a bridge-builder remains instructive.
The new Pope Leo would echo this approach by reinforcing the Church’s presence in international peace-building, ecological diplomacy, and interfaith dialogue. Already in his first appearance, he described the church as a bridge builder.
Finally, Leo XIII was a defender of the spiritual and moral order. His encyclicals often addressed the moral underpinnings of society, insisting on the centrality of family, virtue, and divine law.
It is no coincidence that the new Pope comes from Augustinian order with its discipline for faith and morale. In an age of moral fluidity, the new Pope Leo could become a clarion voice for ethical clarity- upholding dignity, conscience, and the transcendent nature of human life.
Every Pope is different and no two popes are the same. The above framework from the name he chose could shed light to our anticipation and the renewal the new Pope would be bringing. Pope Leo XIV could become a truly transformative shepherd for the contemporary Church. He could also choose not to be any of the above, after all, he was not a media favourite as a liberal nor a media castigate as a conservative. He just happened.
May his papacy happen to us too. Amen.
©Felix Uche Akam: 08.05.2025
Habemus Papam
