Testimonies on Father and Bishop Prevost - from Illinois and Peru

From Illinois, the following note from a priest: 

The former Fr. Prevost was an assistant pastor at St. Jude in New Lenox for a time, not far from where we serve.  It is an Augustinian parish.  

The strong and firm consensus about him in this area is that he is smart, quiet, and kind.

***

The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) in North America has annual missions to northern Peru, especially in the city of Piura. There, they are warmly welcomed by an American priest, Father Joe (Joseph Uhen), of the Santísimo Sacramento Parish.

Fatima and Pope Leo XIV

by Fr. Jay Finelli

Today is the 108th Anniversary of the First Apparition of Our Lady of Fatima. Let us examine the prophetic link between Fatima, Pope Leo XIII, and Pope Leo XIV.

FRIENDS OF CAMPOS: Help the only Diocesan Structure in the World Exclusively Dedicated to the Traditional Mass

Friends of CAMPOS, BRAZIL: EASTERTIDE

Aldo Maria Valli: "Time to Return to a Normal Pope."

 Aldo Maria Valli, the former Vaticanist for Italian state broadcaster RAI (and very critical of the last pontificate, as every sensible Catholic), concluded his article today with these words:

"Before and After the Conclave" - by Archbishop Héctor Agüer

Before and After the Conclave

Archbishop Héctor Agüer

Emeritus of La Plata, Argentina

Buenos Aires, May 12, 2025

Before the Conclave

Our Long Collective Nightmare is Over

Earlier today, another sign that, no matter what happens, at least a sense of Catholic normalcy is returning to the Vatican.

Video: Leo XIV takes possession of papal apartments in Apostolic Palace - move in 7 weeks

Video below, provided by Italian news agency ANSA:

A RORATE Editorial Note: Kinship

A Pontificate to Continue the Legacy of Christ

On the same day that the Church in Rome buried Pope Francis I had the privilege of offering a funeral Mass and burial for a woman who, almost 40 years ago, was among those who requested of Cardinal Hickey, then Archbishop of Washington, a southern Maryland venue at which to offer the Latin Mass. That location turned out to be my parish of Saint Francis de Sales and I was the priest who took up that task in 2010 as a new pastor there.

The writer with the late Catherine Quinn who, almost forty years ago, was instrumental in restoring the traditional Latin Mass in the Archdiocese of Washington.

Leo XIV: the hope of the Church and the world

 

Dear Readers,  for your consideration, I offer this translation of an Italian  article that  reflects my present thoughts and sentiments regarding the election of Pope Leo XIV, despite initially being worried when I heard his name.  

Paolo Deotto

Il Nuovo Arengario

10th May 2025

Allow me today to speak only of the Pope.

In the coming days we will also return to our customary news, which is, unfortunately, mostly news of a world lost, in the hands of the reckless (in the best of cases) and the wicked (more often than not), where the few who are still lucid and honest are insulted and attacked.

A world that needs to rediscover reason and peace - true peace.

And from whom can this true peace come if not from Christ?

Can we once again look to Rome as a guide and a beacon of light?

I hope so with all my heart. Twelve years of the Bergoglian disaster have filled us with suspicion.  Nor could it be any other way.

Leo XIV to the Lady of Good Counsel

In the guestbook at Genazzano, the city of the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel, which he visited today, Pope Leo XIV wrote the following:  

“Still in the first days of the pontificate, I felt the duty and a deep longing to approach Genazzano, the shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel, who, throughout my life, has accompanied me with her maternal presence, with her wisdom, and the example of her love for her son who is always the center of my faith. Way, truth and life. 

"Thank you Mother, for your help - accompany me in this new mission”  

Leo PP XIV 

May 10, 2025

Francis Witnesses the Traditional Mass in Saint Mary Major

 The Jubilee Pilgrimage of the Institute of Christ the King had a celebratory Traditional Mass in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major this week.

In the video below (tip: Una Voce Sevilla, Spain), that lighted spot in the background is the recently opened tomb of Francis, which was put in the place of magnificent early 17th-century baroque  wall ands doorway, decorated with the most beautiful stone, destroyed and demolished to accomodate the enormous humility of the humble pontiff.

Leo XIV: Address to the College of Cardinals

Thank you very much, Your Eminence. Before taking our seats, let us begin with a prayer, asking the Lord to continue to accompany this College, and above all the entire Church with this spirit, with enthusiasm, but also with deep faith. Let us pray together in Latin.

Pater noster… Ave Maria…

In the first part of this meeting, there will be a short talk with some reflections that I would like to share with you. But then there will be a second part, a bit like the opportunity that many of you had asked for: a sort of dialogue with the College of Cardinals to hear what advice, suggestions, proposals, concrete things, which have already been discussed in the days leading up to the Conclave.

Dear Brother Cardinals,

Leo XIV and the Future of the Church - by Roberto de Mattei

 Roberto de Mattei

Rome, May 10, 2025

The white smoke rose as a surprise from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel at 6:08 p.m. on Thursday, May 8, as the twilight illuminated the Bernini colonnade. An hour later, St. Peter's Square and Via della Conciliazione were packed with more than a hundred thousand people, while nearly a billion were connected through the media. The crowd, as had happened in 1978 with Pope Wojtyla, did not immediately understand the name of the new pontiff, announced by Cardinal Dominique Mamberti. However, the applause erupted long and thunderous. The square acclaimed the 267th successor of St. Peter, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who assumed the name of Pope Leo XIV. 

Rector of Cathedral in Pope's former Diocese: "I never heard from him one sentence in favor of all these [human sexuality] novelties"

The rector of the Chiclayo Cathedral in the years when Robert Prevost was diocesan ordinary, Fr. Jorge Millan Cotrina, lived with other priests in the residence of the bishop, now Pope Leo XIV, for 8 years.

He was interviewed earlier today by a famous Argentine radio interviewer (YouTube video embedded in the end here, in Spanish); the interviewer pressed him on regarding "LGBT issues." 

After making clear that these "LGBT" issues really are irrelevant in Chiclayo, unlike abroad and in the Peruvian capital Lima, the priest was firm: "He [Leo XIV] knows very well what is the teaching of Christ" on such matters; "he showed it to us in his homilies; I never heard from him one sentence in favor of all these novelties. Rather, he was always a man who tried to put realities in the proper place."

What Italian Daily "Corriere della Sera" Reported on May 1st

Source: Conclave Life, Corriere della Sera, May 1st, 2025.

Excerpt, for the record of current events:

Spiritual Bouquet for Pope Leo XIV

 For traditional Catholics and all Catholics interested in adding their names and prayers to the spiritual bouquet organized by the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales: please click here.

Inaugural Sermon of Leo XIV - Sistine Chapel - Full Text

A very good first sermon of the new Pope in the mass with the Cardinals at the Sistine Chapel. No buzzwords, just Christ-God. Christological, Christ-centered, Patristic.

Leo spoke briefly in English before his sermon, saying:

"I want to repeat the words from the Responsorial Psalm: 'I will sing a new song to the Lord, because He has done marvels,' and indeed, not just with me but with all of us.

"My brother Cardinals, as we celebrate this morning, I invite you to reflect on the marvels the Lord has done, the blessings that the Lord continues to pour out on all of us through the Ministry of Peter.

"You have called me to carry that cross, and to carry out that mission, and I know I can rely on each and every one of you to walk with me, as we continue as a Church, as a community of friends of Jesus, as believers, to announce the Good News, to announce the Gospel."

"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Mt 16:16). In these words, Peter, asked by the Master, together with the other disciples, about his faith in him, expressed the patrimony that the Church, through the apostolic succession, has preserved, deepened and handed on for two thousand years." 

Then, the following homily in Italian:

Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God: the one Saviour, who alone reveals the face of the Father.

For the historical record: Certificate of Acceptance of the Supreme Pontificate

 

Certificate of the Public Instrument of Acceptance of the Roman Pontificate by Cardinal Prevost and formal registration of the name he assumed, drawn up by the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations acting as notary. (Source: Office of Pontifical Celebrations X account @UCEPO)

Interestingly, the last native English-speaking pope, Cardinal Nicholas Breakspear (Adrian IV), a cardinal of the order of bishops, also had as his cardinalatial title the Suburbicarian See of Albano.

Before Leo XIV, he had been the only Cardinal of that titular see to be elected Roman Pontiff.

The Fast Election of Leo XIV: Now What? - by Fr. Claude Barthe

 Fr. Claude Barthe

May 8, 2025

In the French Academy, we'd call this an “election of a Marshal”: on the second day of the conclave, in the fourth vote, Robert Francis Prevost just won an absolute majority, faster than Cardinal Ratzinger in 2005 and Cardinal Bergoglio in 2013.

Born in Chicago in 1955, a religious of the Augustinian order, a highly competent jurist with long pastoral experience in Peru, where he became Bishop of Chiclayo, he was called by Pope Francis to become Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in 2023.

All commentators will now ask whether he will be a faithful follower of Pope Francis. The answer is both yes and no. 

So what to think of the new Pope?

Leo XIV

 It's too soon. 

On the one hand... he is a creature of the Church of Chicago and liberal Villanova University, and the very liberal Catholic Theological Union (even more liberal when he was a student there, in the feverish 1970s);  he has a long life living in the Liberation Theology-filled rural expanses of Peru; on the other, he is a Doctor of Canon Law, after a period in which it was destroyed by arbitrariness.

We are encouraged by his choice of name, by his reasonable opening message, and by his use of the papal mozzetta -- they are all signs of true humility, not the feigned humility of the past few years. We dread the future, we just want peace. Will peace come?...

Oremus pro pontifice nostro Leone XIV

Dominus conservet eum,

et vivificet eum,

et beatum faciat eum in terra,

et non tradat eum

in animam inimicorum eius.

Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost, American, born in the Archdiocese of Chicago, on September 14, 1955, was elected on the 4th vote of the Conclave. His pontifical name is Leo XIV.

Prevost is a former superior of the Order of Saint Augustine, and bishop in Peru (where he had lived much of his religious life), before being named Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops by Francis.

 

We pray for him and for the happiness, peace, and liberty of the Holy Roman Church, and of the entire Catholic Church.

What Holy Mother Church needs is unity and peace, no more agitation. Since 1959, this permanent state of agitation.

May Our Lord and Our Lady grant us a period of peace. We need peace. We need normality.

God bless the new Pope, and may God protect our Church.

We will soon publish a post with more information on the new Roman Pontiff.

HABEMUS PAPAM

 

A new Pope has been elected after the 4th Vote (3rd of the day): The See is no longer vacant.

We will soon learn his name when the Cardinal Protodeacon announces him from the Loggia of St. Peter's Basilica.

From Rome: Might it be Today?

Habemus Papam? Maybe?

by Aurelio Porfiri

Rome, May 8, 2025

Many people and seasoned Vatican watchers around the Vatican have the impression that today might be the day the new Pope is elected.

I’ve spoken with individuals who have been following Vatican affairs for decades, and they say it would be surprising if no Pope were elected today. Everyone is waiting for the moment when Cardinal Dominique Mamberti appears on the balcony of St. Peter’s (unless he himself is the one elected) to announce the name of the new Pope to the world.

What To Do During The Conclave

The last couple weeks were the important ones for any hope of influence. Media articles lifting up good cardinals. Reports exposing bad cardinals. We can only hope the cardinal electors talked with their sheep, read up on their colleagues, chatted with their colleagues on strategy and came up with a Plan A, Plan B and Plan C, if not more.

The Procession of the Cardinals - Litany of the Saints - Live

You may follow along with the Libretto available here.

Conclave Predictions: The Length Will Indicate What Lies Ahead

by Aurelio Porfiri

Rome, May 7, 2025

Today, the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, which leans progressive, still listed Cardinal Pietro Parolin, former Secretary of State, as the frontrunner, and noted a rise in support for the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa. According to journalist Iacopo Scaramuzzi, La Repubblica’s Vatican correspondent and author of the article, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle appears to be losing ground.

Parolin, the Front-Runner -- "Double luck," wishes Cardinal Dean at Final Mass before Conclave

 Cardinal Pietro Parolin is the front runner -- no doubt about that. As Rorate said days ago on X/Twitter:

There is no doubt Parolin is the front runner, as Ratzinger in 2005 (for the same reasons), and Bergoglio in 13 (because he had been the second-place in 05).

Since there is no runner-up now (Scola being over 80), this is Parolin’s to lose. (Twitter)

There seems to be an assumption by some that this is being "alarmist." Not true; while a Parolin pontificate would not be a good Catholic's choice, believe us when we say that there are MUCH worse options.

Regardless, being a favorite doesn't mean it's certain, far from it. Two thirds is a MIGHTY number to reach. Nobody knows. (Twitter)

This clear favoritism seems to have been confirmed by a comment made the Cardinal Dean, Cardinal Re, personally to Parolin in the Missa pro Eligendo Pontifice in the Vatican Basilica: "Best of luck... doubly!" (Auguri... doppi!) -- video below:

The New York Times: "Catholics Who Prefer Latin Mass Pin Hopes on a New Pope"

 

Main excerpts below:

Catholics Who Prefer Latin Mass Pin Hopes on a New Pope 

Ruth Graham

The New York Times

May 7, 2025 (page A12)

About 140 people came to the Sweetest Heart of Mary church in Detroit for the Traditional Latin Mass at noon the Sunday after Easter. Incense and organ music wafted through the ornate sanctuary, built by Polish Catholics in the late 19th century. It was a beautiful sunny spring afternoon, and the lilacs by the rectory were in bloom.

THE CONCLAVE: Waiting for the White Smoke - by Roberto de Mattei

Roberto de Mattei

Corrispondenza Romana

Rome, May 7, 2025

While we wait for the white smoke to rise over the Sistine Chapel, we ask ourselves: what will be the first words that the new Pope will pronounce from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica? "Brothers and sisters, good evening," like Pope Francis, or "Praised be Jesus Christ," like John Paul II? Or a formula like that of Benedict XVI, who after saying: "After the great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord," and added: "In the joy of the risen Lord, trusting in his permanent help, let us move forward. The Lord will help us and Mary, his Most Holy Mother, will be on our side." Certainly, the words and gestures with which the future Pope will inaugurate his pontificate will already reveal a trend, offering a first element of discernment to the sensus fidei of the Catholic people.

Whatever name he takes, will the Pontiff elected by the College of Cardinals want to follow in the footsteps of Francis or break with his pontificate, which many say has been a catastrophe for the Church? The candidacy of Pope Francis' Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, poses serious problems in this respect. In fact, it has never happened in the modern age, with the exception of Pius XII, that a Secretary of State became Pope, because the cardinal electors generally want to emphasize in their choice that each pontificate is different from the previous one. 

The Inevitability of Francis, Fulfillment of the Council -- and the Death of the Spirit of Vatican II

 by Father Richard Cipolla

The papacy of Francis was indeed inevitable. The person of Jorge Mario Bergoglio was formed by the years leading up to the Second Vatican Council, by the event of the Council itself and the three decades following the Council.  He has been described as a complex man with a complex history. Surely a part of this complexity was a result of being a Jesuit at a time of great upheavals in the Jesuit order during the 1960s and 1970s that followed the Second Vatican Council.  It is now commonplace to point out that the main effects of Vatican II on the Catholic Church were not merely on what the documents of that Council said, but also, and much more to the point, on the appearance of what became known as the “spirit” of Vatican II.  This “spirit” was claimed to be the authentic reading of the Council documents that in many cases contradicted the documents themselves.  The most obvious example is the revision of the Liturgy that was carried out by a group of liturgical periti, the experts,some of whom held well known negative feelings towards the Traditional Roman Mass as shown in their publications even before the Council.  The frank and detailed history of the proceedings of the Concilium is readily available in Annibale Bunigni’s published account of the proceedings of the Concilium in his book The Reform of the Liturgy: 1948-1975. It is there that one sees quite clearly the phenomenon of the “spirit” of Vatican II, where what the Council document on the Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, asked for, and the liturgical form that came out of the Concilium were quite different, where the “spirit” of Vatican II voided the letter and import of Vatican II.  These liturgical “spiritists” still roam the corridors of the liturgical academic center of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome and elsewhere, though silver threads are showing among their golden heads. 

All is Ready for the 2025 Conclave (Video)

Tutto è pronto. I cardinali domani entreranno in #Conclave2025 pic.twitter.com/9DTM21if5n

— Silere non possum (@silerenonpossum) May 6, 2025

Conclave in an Era of Cultural Shift

 by Kevin Tierney

for Rorate Caeli

May 6, 2025

Thomas Cole, Desolation (1836)

On May 7^th, 2025, the world will turn its attention to Rome for the papal conclave to elect a successor to Pope Francis.  In a certain way of looking at things, it is a reminder that Catholicism, and only Catholicism, can capture the attention of the world when it comes to Christianity.  That even her foes watch with great interest is a reminder of this fact.  In addition to the importance, everyone loves a good story of intrigue, and conclaves are full of them.  Already we are seeing the intrigue afoot.

From Rome: Rome is now Mission Territory

by Aurelio Porfiri, in Rome

for Rorate Caeli

May 5, 2025

Rome, the city that seems indifferent to everything and everyone, awaits the Conclave with curiosity. A curiosity that often turns into folklore and is no longer lived in the light of faith. This concerns more and more people—not only in Rome. Precisely for this reason, the new Pope cannot avoid considering that the proclamation of the faith must be one of the main themes of his Pontificate.

Propers for the Votive Mass for the Election of a Supreme Pontiff - OREMUS

Priests everywhere who offer the traditional Latin Mass should make a point of using this rare and beautiful Votive Mass "Pro eligendo Summo Pontifice," with the Introit "Suscitabo." There are at least two ferias this week, Tuesday and Thursday, that would allow for it. 

Imagining a Restorative Conclave

 

The pope has died. As good Catholics we always pray for and commend the souls of all who have died to the mercy of God. This we also do for the man chosen by conclave in 2013 to serve in the office of supreme pontiff for these past twelve years. Requiescat in pace, Pope Francis.

CONCLAVE: Restoring Unity to the Church

Fr. Claude Barthe

Res Novae

May 3, 2025

Even prior to the opening of the pre-conclave General Congregations, the Eternal City has entered into a state of effervescence. The question has arisen as to whether the 135 cardinal electors, nearly 80% of whom were appointed by Francis, will bring to the pontificate a man whose governance will be in the same vein, or, on the contrary, a cardinal with a will to compromise, who will take into account the grievances of the conservatives, to a greater or lesser degree, depending on the state of the forces present. If left at that, however, restoring the lost unity would not be on the agenda. The post-Vatican II popes ultimately failed to restore this unity, both the popes of “restoration”, John Paul II and above all Benedict XVI, and Francis, the pope of “progress”. A pope espousing a more tempered version of progress would likewise fail.

Call for All-Night Adoration, May 4-5, for the Election of a Holy Pope

Our friends in Una Voce Czechia are recommending all-night adoration in one's parish or community on the night of Sunday, May 4, to Monday, May 5, 2025. Eucharistic adoration may begin immediately after Sunday Mass and then end on Monday morning. However, another day and time may be chosen, as it suits the circumstances.

If you get this going, please let them know here so it can be added to the global map.

A RORATE Guide: The Who's Who of Bad Options in the Conclave

Rorate has chosen to provide a list that is useful for identifying those who may not be the best choices available for the Cardinal Electors in the 2025 Conclave -- for doctrinal or moral reasons, or simply for reasons of administrative ineptitude.

After 12 years of doctrinal disaster, moral ambiguity, and administrative authoritarianism and chaos, the Church deserves unity and peace.

This is our guide of problematic Cardinals: if you hear one of the names below after the Habemus Papam... it could be a sign of trouble in the years ahead: small, middle-sized, or huge problems...

The Who's Who of Bad Options in the Conclave

by Serre Verweij

May 1, 2025

Renewal and Restoration in the Church: An Open Letter to the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church

(The document below may be downloaded as a PDF here.)

An Open Letter to the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church

Your Eminences:

The following document emerged from discussions over the past year among theologians, pastors, and canonists, who had been encouraged to produce this document by a senior cardinal. Originally our thought had been to seek for signatories—knowing, as we do, how many notable figures in the Catholic Church are in agreement with or sympathetic to the points made herein—but in view of the suddenness of the upcoming conclave, we have decided to publish the statement as it is.

In publishing this statement, we do not wish to take upon ourselves tasks to which we have not been called by God. Rather, we simply wish to offer, out of love for the Church and according to our lights, some suggestions that may be helpful to those who have received the awesome responsibility of governing Christ’s flock. This we do, moreover, on the traditional feast of St. Catherine of Siena, a laywoman who was a light to the Church in her time, and reminds us of the need to speak with boldness or parrhesia, as befits disciples of the one Master.

The authors recognise that “in vast areas of the world, the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel” (Benedict XVI, Letter to Bishops), while errors and deviations abound within the Church; and they hope that the proposals here set forth constitute a timely call to metanoia.

With the assurance of our fervent prayers to the Holy Ghost for the College of Cardinals especially in the upcoming Conclave, we humbly ask your prayerful consideration of the content that follows.

April 30, 2025

St. Catherine of Siena

(usus antiquior)