VATICAN: The newly elected pontiff Leo XIV has called on the Catholic Church to “desperately” counter a lack of faith in his first mass at the Vatican while congratulatory messages poured in for making history as the first American-born pontiff.
The 69-year-old former Prevost was chosen to be the 267th pope by the Conclave on Thursday after more than two-thirds of the cardinals voted for him to succeed the late Pope Francis.
According to Reuters, the first US leader of the Catholic Church in his homely, Pope Leo XIV expressed concern that people were turning to “technology, money, success, power, or pleasure” for security instead of the Church.
He warned of the dangers caused by a lack of faith and hoping the Catholic Church could be a beacon lighting the world’s “dark nights”.
The new pontiff said he had been elected to be a “faithful administrator” of the Church and to steer it as a “beacon” to reach areas suffering a “lack of faith”.
“A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society,” he said in Italian.
“There are many settings in which Jesus, although appreciated as a man, is reduced to a kind of charismatic leader or superman. This is true not only among non-believers but also among many baptized Christians, who thus end up living, at this level, in a state of practical atheism,” Leo XIV said.
Once again praising the late Pope Francis and invoking his missionary focus, he added: “This is the world that has been entrusted to us, a world in which, as Pope Francis taught us so many times, we are called to bear witness to our joyful faith in Jesus the Saviour.”
Pope Leo wore a white robe trimmed in gold as he addressed the seated cardinals in the Sistine Chapel address broadcast live by the Vatican administration.
The first American pope highlighting “practical atheism” is set against the backdrop of Christianity and regular church attendance declining in the United States in recent decades.
The number of Americans who identify as Catholic is down significantly since 2007, according to Pew Research Center, although the decline has levelled off in recent years.
Today, 20 percent of American adults describe themselves as Catholics, compared to 24 percent in 2007.
About 60 percent of American Catholics say they attend Mass “a few times a year” or less often, and 17 percent say religion is “not too or not all important” to their lives, Pew Research Center found.
On Thursday evening, Prevost was introduced to the world as the new Pope Leo XIV to rousing cheers from crowds gathered in St Peter’s Square.
He was elected leader by his fellow cardinals in just two days of voting in the secret conclave that took place two weeks after Francis died.
He is seen as being aligned with the late Pope, who was viewed as a progressive champion of human rights and the poor and celebrated for his charismatic style that sought to make the Catholic Church more outward-facing.
Vatican watchers have noted that Francis appeared to have brought Prevost to Rome in recent years, perhaps to set him up as a potential successor.
Pope Leo’s upcoming remarks, which include Sunday’s midday Regina Coeli prayer and a Monday press conference with journalists, will be closely scrutinised for hints as to which direction he intends to lead the Church and what kind of Pope he will be.
According to the Vatican, an inauguration Mass for Leo will be held in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday May 18.
World and religious leaders are invited to the inauguration, which marks the formal launch of a papacy.
Pope Francis’ inauguration in 2013 attracted a crowd estimated at 200,000 people.
The Vatican said the new pope will also leave senior Vatican officials in their roles for the time being, giving him time to decide before making definitive appointments,
All Vatican senior officials, appointed for five-year terms, serve at the pleasure of the pope.
A new pontiff usually rolls over existing mandates at least initially before deciding whether to change key positions.
