Pope Leo XIV’s Election “a sign of hope”, Catholic Bishops in Mozambique Say, Pledge “fidelity, communion, obedience”

CEM members also pledge “fidelity, communion, and obedience to the new Pope, the Vicar of Christ and Servant of the Servants of God.”

They invited the people of God in Mozambique to “joyfully embrace this new moment in the life of the Church.”

The Catholic Church leaders further invite the people of God to “renew their commitment to the mission and vocation of the Church, inspired by pastoral, social, and spiritual challenges.”

“Let us renew together our commitment to peace, justice, and fraternity. We reaffirm our awareness that we are a pilgrim Church, in communion with our new pastor,” CEM members say.

They entrust the Pontificate of Pope Leo XIV to the “intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace and Patroness of Mozambique, and to the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.”

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“May the Lord strengthen him in the mission of confirming the brethren in faith and guiding the People of God in charity,” CEM members say in their May 8 statement.

On May 8 at 6:09 p.m. Rome time, white smoke rose from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signalling that the Cardinal Electors had elected the successor of St. Peter to take over from the late Pope Francis, who passed on Easter Monday, April 21 and was laid to rest on April 26 in his “beloved” Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major as he had explained in his testament.

When the new Pontiff appeared on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at approximately 7:25 p.m. Rome time, he addressed the people of God present in person and all those, who were watching around the world, offering his first blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city and the world) as the new Roman pontiff.

In his first address as Pope, the 69-year-old American-born member of the Order of St. Augustine (OSA) asked the people of God to help the Church build bridges through dialogue and encounter, working for unity and peace.

Born on 14 September 1955 in Chicago, USA to Louis Marius Prevost of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez of Spanish descent, the new Pontiff took his First Vows in the OSA in September 1978 and had his Perpetual Profession in August 1981. He was ordained a Priest in June 1982 in Rome.

He served as Prior General of the OSA for two six-year consecutive terms, which ended in 2013. In November 2014, the late Pope Francis appointed him Apostolic Administrator of Chiclayo Catholic Diocese in Peru, where he had been a missionary, elevating him to the Episcopal dignity and Titular Bishop of Sufar.

The late Pope Francis made him a member of the Dicastery for the Clergy in 2019 and then a member of the Dicastery for Bishops in 2020. In 2023, he was appointed Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, thus playing a key role in the selection process for Local Ordinaries around the world and in the investigation of allegations against Bishops.

The late Pope Francis created him a Cardinal during the September 2023 Consistory.

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate.