Written by Gökhan Bacık | Pope of the period of intra-Western debates and artificial intelligence revolution: Leo XIV

Robert Prevost, born in Chicago in 1955, made history as the first American pope. During the conclave to elect a new pope, Prevost's name was mentioned among possible new popes, but his chances of being elected were not considered high.

On the other hand, if we remember that the previous Pope was Argentinian, the election of popes from the Americas continues. It is necessary to remember that most Catholics now live in the southern hemisphere. Although born in Chicago, the new Pope Leo XIV spent most of his life in Peru.

We do not have any data that global powers directly intervened in papal elections. However, politics and the papacy (and religion in general) are intertwined. Therefore, it would be naive to claim that there is no connection between what is happening in the world and the papal election.

We are talking about an election in which 135 cardinals, whose average age is around 70, can participate. If we look at the geographical distribution, 29% of them come from Europe, 14% from Italy, 18% from Latin America, 9% from North America, 16% from Asia-Pacific and 14% from Africa and the Middle East. Therefore, we are talking about a group that is more or less familiar with the dynamics of world politics due to their age and background, and generally speaks many languages.

It would not be right to expect this elite group to act without taking into account the problems and dynamics in world politics when choosing a pope. From this perspective, it seems possible to claim that those who voted for Leo XIV wanted to achieve a kind of balance by choosing an American pope. In the USA, where sharp internal divisions and end-time evangelical groups have gained more influence than they deserve, Catholics – that is, traditional scriptural religion – will increase their influence with the new pope. Similarly, Leo XIV’s progressive stance on various political issues can play a role against the extreme trends that are gaining strength in world and American politics. From this perspective – not in terms of content but in terms of structure – we can compare the relationship between Leo XIV and global politics to the relationship between Pope John Paul II and world politics (especially in the context of the competition between the West and communism).

The West is currently going through major debates, such as the future of NATO, US-European relations, and the internal problems of liberalism. The new Pope will gain significance and a role in these debates – of course, in proportion to the power he represents. It would be right to think that Leo XIV will not be against change, but will use his influence to ensure that this change takes place according to the values ​​of traditional Western civilization.

Indeed, the profile of the new Pope is exactly the chosen robe for the mission claimed above. Leo XIV's native language is English. In other words, the new Pope will establish very good contact with the Western world, especially the US society. He will polemicize better, use more effective examples and, most importantly, be more visible and leave a mark. In other words, the language barrier between the Pope and the American society has been eliminated. As O'Reilly said, because of this barrier, the opinion of what the Pope said on certain issues was always conveyed to the American society through a nebulous interpretation.

14. Leo's father is a World War II veteran. He studied mathematics at university. He has an important book called Probability and Theistic Explanation published by Oxford University Press. In the book, the Pope tries to show the existence of God by using Bayes' Theorem, along with the methods of another philosopher, by following the philosopher Richard Swinburne. In short, Bayes' Theorem is used to calculate the probability of some information occurring using probability calculations. 14. Leo also studied philosophy at university in addition to his mathematics education.

Having served in Peru for about twelve years, Leo XIV speaks Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese in addition to his native English. A critical point here is that Leo XIV will serve in the Vatican between 2023 and 2025. During this period, he was among the favorites of former Pope Francis. He gained close experience in European politics. Indeed, Leo XIV is interpreted in a way as a continuation of Francis’ politics – of course with a new tone.

 Dolayısı ile 14. Leo bir yandan mutedil bir gelenekçi diğer yandan fakirlik, eşitsizlik gibi konularda çalışmış birisi. Nihayet, 14. Leo'nun – eğer yaptığımız tartışmalar doğru ise– Batı'da yükselen aşırı (bu aşırılıklar hem siyasette hem dini alanda) gruplara karşı bir etki üretmesi bekleniyor. Bir açıdan Batı'da –özellikle Amerika'da– 'kontrolden çıkmış' yeni dini akımlar, ahir zamancı gruplara karşı Kilise'nin ağırlığını koyacağını beklemek mümkün. Bunu İslam tarihinde zaman zaman aşırı noktalar savurulan Sufi gruplara karşı kitabi İslam'ın – yani Sünniliğin– tepkisine benzetmek bir ölçüde mümkün.

At this point, Robert Prevost, who appears before us as Leo XIV, is relatively young, understands the language of mathematics and philosophy, and his church background defines him as someone who takes social problems into account.

In this context, the critical question is: Why did Robert Prevost take the name Leo XIV? The answer to the question is about Leo XIII.

Pope Leo XIII was Pope from 1878 to 1903. Leo XIII had a great historical impact because he redefined the role of the Church in society after the Industrial Revolution. The Catholic Church responded to the new society that emerged in the radically changed Western world after the Industrial Revolution with Leo XIII's reforms.

For example, in 1891, during the reign of Leo XIII, the church adapted its creed to the modern era and modern problems with a Rerum Novarum, or "jurisprudence on new things". This addressed issues such as workers' rights, equal pay, and union rights. (It should be noted that such a social jurisprudence has not yet occurred, at least in Sunni Islam.) Indeed, because of such steps, Leo XIII is seen as the intellectual forerunner of the likes of the late Pope Francis.

Leo also adopted a softer tone regarding scientific developments. He supported the treatment of religious issues by scientific methods – that is, in the light of rational and concrete facts – rather than scholastic debates. Equally important, Leo XIII showed an interest in diplomacy and tried to influence directly and indirectly critical Western issues.

Robert Prevost, who of course knows the meaning of Leo XIII's legacy better than we do, took the name Leo XIV when he was elected Pope. This means 'I will follow in the path of the previous Leo'. In other words, the world is going through a complex period again. Like the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century, there is now a robotic revolution, an artificial intelligence revolution, and society is changing. The church will probably respond to these changes and the new questions they will bring with Leo XIV. Social issues will be emphasized, and a theology based on rational arguments will be proposed.