Pope Leo XIV said Friday that his election was both a cross to bear and a blessing as he celebrated his first Mass and details began to emerge of how votes swiftly coalesced to make ...

Leo XIV celebrated his first Mass as pontiff at the Vatican's Sistine Chapel on May 9, the day after stunning the world as the first pope from the United States in the Church's history.

Being here in Rome, being part of something that’s thousands of years old, and seeing a list of every pope since St. Peter — you see this continuous chain, and you just know you’re part of ...