The U.S.-born pope spent about a dozen years as a missionary in Peru and returned there later to serve as a bishop.

The papacy is a global platform, so the issues Pope Leo chooses to focus on can resonate far beyond the church.

Still, it was an exciting moment for the Americans who were at the Vatican that day. Mariner says he and his wife were in a restaurant in Rome at the time, surrounded by dozens of U.S. citizens. When the new pope was announced, Mariner heard many of the patrons joyfully exclaim, “He’s an American!”

The papal conclave is convening on Wednesday to begin the process of electing Pope Francis' successor. And for Americans who are visiting Rome this week, it's a chance to experience history."It's

After weeks of significant moments in the Catholic Church, one Billings student has found himself at the center of one of the most extraordinary moments in modern Church history.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV has made peace with Jannik Sinner. The top-ranked tennis player visited the new pope on Wednesday, gave him a tennis racket and offered to play, during an off day for Sinner at the Italian Open.

Among his first messages, Pope Leo XIV expressed his intention to strengthen the Catholic Church's ties with the Jewish community.

It has traditionally been the second most symbolic building in the Vatican, after St. Peter's Basilica. Leo XIVinstructed on Sunday to remove the seals placed on the papal apartment at the Apostolic Palace,