The newly elected Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Prevost of Chicago\u2019s South Side, may be signaling something far more disruptive than a shift in spiritual leadership. He\u2019s a former missionary in the slums of Peru. An Augustinian. And if his chosen name is any indication, he\u2019s aligning himself with one of the boldest traditions in Vatican history\u2014defending labor in the face of capital.<\/p>\n VATICAN CITY, VATICAN – MAY 8: The newly elected Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV is seen for the first time … More<\/span> from the Vatican balcony on May 8, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. White smoke was seen over the Vatican early this evening as the Conclave of Cardinals took just two days to elect Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who will be known as Pope Leo (Leone) XIV, as the 267th Supreme Pontiff after the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday. (Photo by Dan Kitwood\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n Getty Images<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n More than a century ago, Pope Leo XIII issued Rerum Novarum<\/em>, the Church\u2019s groundbreaking endorsement of workers\u2019 rights. With global inequality surging and tech-driven capitalism reshaping work itself, the arrival of a new Leo could not be more timely. This pope, unlike many political leaders, may be ready to speak the one word billionaires fear: justice.<\/p>\n Now, here\u2019s the thing. The new pope is also a White Sox fan.<\/p>\n The new pope is a White Sox fan.<\/p>\n As soon as Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected Pope Leo XIV, the question popped up online: Sox or Cubs? His brother John settled it quickly in an interview with WGN: \u201cHe was never, ever a Cubs fan,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I don\u2019t know where that came from. He was always a Sox fan.\u201d<\/p>\n That might sound like trivia. It\u2019s not. Because if you understand anything about Chicago\u2019s South Side, you know that choosing the Sox isn\u2019t just about baseball. It\u2019s about class, place, and loyalty. That might not mean much to the rest of the world, but to me, it says everything about who you are.<\/p>\n VATICAN CITY, VATICAN – SEPTEMBER 30: Newly appointed cardinal Robert Francis Prevost poses for a … More<\/span> portrait during the courtesy visits, following a consistory, on September 30, 2023 in Vatican City, Vatican. Pope Francis holds a consistory for the creation of 21 new cardinals, the consistory falls before the start of the Synod on Synodality, set to take place in October. (Photo by Alessandra Benedetti – Corbis\/Corbis via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Corbis via Getty Images<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Rooting for the South Side means you likely have an innate love of the underdog. It\u2019s a working-class identity, a sign of loyalty to neighborhoods that are often overlooked.<\/p>\n That small detail tells you something deeper. This pope, like his namesake more than a century ago, may be stepping into the age-old fight between capital and labor, not as a neutral party. Helping the poor and downtrodden is central to Catholic teaching, a mission Pope Francis elevated. But Pope Leo XIV could take it further.<\/p>\n The Vatican has swapped a Jesuit for an Augustinian.<\/p>\n If the Jesuits are intellectual heavyweights, political, philosophical, and global in scope, then Pope Francis was the embodiment of that tradition. Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Prevost, comes from a different spiritual lineage. Not only is he a Chicagoan, he is an Augustinian.<\/p>\n Augustinians are mendicants, like the Franciscans, Dominicans, and Carmelites. These are orders built around vows of poverty and service. They don\u2019t stay cloistered. They embed in cities. They preach, teach, and minister in the thick of life, among those most in need.<\/p>\n The Augustinian tradition is rooted in the teachings of St. Augustine of Hippo. He is also my confirmation saint. His influence on Catholic thought, especially around grace, justice, and community, is hard to overstate. Prevost led the Augustinians globally for more than a decade. He lived for nearly 20 years in the slums of northern Peru. His spiritual DNA reflects that legacy: radical humility, deep contemplation, and a theology that demands action.<\/p>\n His papal name, Leo, is no accident.<\/p>\n In 1891, Pope Leo XIII issued Rerum Novarum<\/em> (Of New Things<\/em>), one of the most important encyclicals in Catholic history. It was the Church\u2019s first formal stance on the dignity of labor. It affirmed the right of workers to unionize and laid out responsibilities for both capital and labor.<\/p>\n (Original Caption) Pope Leo XIII. Photograph made in 1878.<\/p>\n Bettmann Archive<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Leo XIII wasn\u2019t a Marxist. But he did rail against capitalism when it was unmoored from ethics. It\u2019s hard to imagine the labor movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries without the Church\u2019s shift in doctrine. In fact, the Church has long been more progressive on labor than most American politicians, especially conservatives. Rerum Novarum<\/em> didn\u2019t merely permit unions; it encouraged them. When workers organize to protect their wages, health, and dignity, they are in moral alignment with Catholic teaching.<\/p>\n Nearly every pope since has reaffirmed that message. Pope John Paul II backed the Solidarity movement in Poland. Pope Francis spoke often about the exploitation of labor. In the U.S., many mainstream politicians treat unions as corrupt relics of the past. The Vatican hasn\u2019t wavered. To pope after pope, labor organizing is a human right. In Catholic social teaching, the picket line is sacred ground.<\/p>\n Now, Pope Leo XIV inherits a world with new robber barons. Not steel magnates or railway kings, but algorithmic overlords and private equity firms. They have burrowed deeper into the worker\u2019s psyche than Carnegie ever could.<\/p>\n Into this moment steps a pope from the South Side, formed in the tradition of St. Augustine.<\/p>\n Habemus Papam:<\/em> We have a pope who believes in common goods and communal living. Lately, I\u2019ve been obsessed with the Gilded Age and its modern parallels. The first Pope Leo faced the Industrial Revolution. This one faces the collapse of the most recent social contract. The poor remain disposable, perhaps more so now.<\/p>\n If papal names are never arbitrary, then Pope Leo XIV\u2019s name is a reminder. The Church\u2019s job is not just to pray over suffering, but to stand with those who suffer and fight with and for them.<\/p>\n So yes, the new pope is thankfully a White Sox fan. That is, if he remembers that Jesus flipped tables.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" More than a century ago, Pope Leo XIII issued Rerum Novarum , the Church\u2019s groundbreaking endorsement of workers\u2019 rights.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":53991,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-53990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nHabemus Papam:<\/em> we have a pope who has already signaled openness to ideas like debt relief, land rights, and even, saints preserve us, reparations.<\/p>\n
\nBut more importantly, he is a Leo. He is Augustinian.
\nAnd if he follows through on the promise of his name, he could be the most consequential pope in a century.<\/p>\n