Pope Leo XIV - warns against making Jesus 'superman'

Pope Leo XIV – warns against making Jesus ‘superman’

Robert Prevost, now Leo XIV, the first American chosen to lead the Catholic Church. He has steered a moderate path with the Augustinian mission in Peru.

World leaders have congratulated the new pope.

The Pope’s first public appearance on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica has been seen as transmitting a quiet strength. His decision to wear a red shoulder cape and red and gold stole was described as a break with the “neo-Franciscan pauperism” of his predecessor.

Pope Leo XIV used his first homily to warn against reducing Jesus to “a kind of charismatic leader or superman”. In an apparent message to evangelical Christians as he celebrated Mass in the Sistine Chapel.

The Italian newspaper La Stampa said the facial expression as he delivered his speech alternated between “the seraphic and understandable emotion, without the latter ever gaining the upper hand”. The body language of the first American pope, known to be shy, expressed the strength and control of a pacifist warrior, the paper added.

A brother of Pope Leo XIV, John Prevost, told the New York Times that he’s a critic of President Trump’s crackdown on migration and could challenge the US leader on his policies.

He said: “I don’t think he’ll stay quiet for too long if he has something to say … I know he’s not happy with what’s going on with immigration. I know that for a fact.”