Pope Leo XIV is now the most powerful American Catholic in the world, and experts say he must aptly walk the line between U.S. politics and his papal duties.

Live updates and latest news as the first North American pope steps into his role as the new leader of the Catholic Church.

Robert Prevost has been elected the first pope from the United States in the history of the Catholic Church. The Chicago-born missionary took the name Leo XIV.

Orlando Catholics celebrated Mother's Day and the first Mass under Pope Leo XIV, expressing joy and optimism for the American pope's potential to unite the church.

The new pope said he would be guided by a key document that his predecessor wrote listing the church’s priorities, including a “loving care for the least and the rejected.”

Robert Prevost, a missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and took over the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops, was elected the first pope from the United States in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church.

The 73-year-old Florida man appears to be a staunch Trump supporter who uses his Facebook account to go on the attack.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Monday called for the release of imprisoned journalists and affirmed the “precious gift of free speech and the press” in an audience with some of the 6,000 journalists who descended on Rome to cover his election as the first American pontiff.