Northern Virginia Catholic students celebrate first American Pope, discuss his background

BURKE, Va. (7News) — Some of the youngest Catholics in the D.C. area are learning about the church's first North American pontiff.

The 300 students at Nativity Catholic School, along with millions around the world, watched Thursday's announcement of Pope Leo XIV from the Vatican.

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On Friday morning at Nativity Catholic School in Burke, Virginia, Monsignor Bob Cilinski presided over Mass with children excited about the new leader.

"What have you heard about him so far?" Friar Cilinski asked the students. "He's from America. He's American. First American to be elected pope."

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One student correctly answered where Pope Leo XIV, formerly Fr. Robert Prevost, was born.

"And was he a Cubs fan or a White Sox fan?" asked. Fr. Cilinski.

"A White Sox fan!" called out a boy.

Amused that the pontiff is a sports fan and from Chicago, the children already feel connected to the new leader.

"I was with the school children watching the announcement of the new pope, and when they all heard he was from the United States, the all applauded and clapped when they saw the American flag among all the well-wishers in the vast crowd in St. Peter's Square," said Fr. Cilinski. "I could sense how proud the children were that the new pope was from their country, the United States and a blessing to all of us."

"Why is it that there has never been an American pope before?" 7News Anchor Victoria Sanchez asked.

"I think it's because we're a new country. We're only 250 years old, the Church is over 2,000 years old. So, we just hadn't earned our place yet. But now, we have," he said proudly.

Fr. Bob said the name Leo XIV has significance and signals the pontiff will stress the importance of social justice. Pope Leo XIII focused much of his papacy, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, on advocating for the rights of workers, fair working conditions and fair pay.

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