Profile: Pontiff Is Far From a Typical American Cleric

Robert Francis Prevost - who has chosen the papal name Leo XIV - may not be the Latin American Jesuit wildcard that his predecessor, Pope Francis, was, but his election is similarly historic.

- Sam Jones

In the figure of the 69-year-old former head of the Augustinian order, the Roman Catholic Church has its very first US-born leader.

Until last night, the idea of the Fisherman's Ring being slipped onto a North American hand was seen as a fairly distant possibility. The Vatican's long-standing opposition to a US pope stemmed largely from the optics of having a pontiff from both a political superpower and a country with such a hegemonic cultural and secular global influence.

But all that changed following a short conclave that opted for a man who had been a cardinal for only a little over two years. While his appointment is likely to be welcomed by progressive factions within the church, it was probably not the news that some of his more conservative, Trump-aligned American brother cardinals had been hoping for.