Pope Leo XIV cites modern-day revolution behind papal name choice

Robert Francis Prevost, the newly elected 267th pope, has chosen the name Leo XIV in what Vatican officials describe as a deliberate nod to Pope Leo XIII, a pivotal figure in guiding the Roman Catholic Church into the modern era.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni told reporters that the choice was a “clear and deliberate reference” to Leo XIII, who led the church from 1878 to 1903 and became known as the “pope of the workers” for his groundbreaking 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum. That document defended workers’ rights, called for a living wage, and laid the foundation for the Church’s modern social teachings, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media. 

Serbian Cardinal Archbishop of Belgrade Ladislav Nemet recounted a conversation with the new pontiff during a dinner following the conclave. 

“He said that we are living in times of a new revolution. He wants to focus especially on issues of social order in today’s digitally transformed world,” Nemet noted

The new pope, an American-born cardinal, explained that the world today is undergoing a new kind of revolution — one driven by digital transformation — that echoes the seismic social and economic shifts of the industrial revolution during Leo XIII’s era.

Historians view Leo XIII as a transitional pope who bridged the conservative values of the pre-modern Church with a forward-looking vision that addressed the growing power of labour and social inequality. 

“Leo XIII is seen as a kind of connection between the pre-modern and the modern Church,” said David I. Kertzer, a professor at Brown University and author of Prisoner of the Vatican.

Kertzer added that the selection of the name Leo XIV signals continuity with Pope Francis's emphasis on social justice, but with a potentially more moderate and traditional tone. 

“It seems like a choice of following Francis, but taking the edges off,” he said.

By Sabina Mammadli