America UnCanceled: Mercedes Schlapp & Dr. Chad Pecknold

Mercedes Schlapp and Dr. Chad Pecknold, an Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at The Catholic University of America, have a conversation on America UnCanceled. They discuss the recent election of Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Cardinal Prevost, last week, May 8th, 2025, and what his election means for Catholics and the traditions of the Church. They reflect on the New Pope’s background as the first North American Pope in the Church’s history, being a Chicago native, and his missionary work in Peru. 

Dr. Pecknold starts by highlighting how then Cardinal Prevost was not considered to be a top candidate at the beginning of the Conclave. He emphasizes that any reasons for his being elected are purely speculative because of the secrecy of the Conclave process. Cardinal Erdo and Cardinal Perolin were considered to be some of the front runners going into the Conclave, he postulates. 

The Cardinals, he speculates, wanted to have a “fresh page” after Pope Francis’ Pontificate. Cardinal Perolin was the Secretary of State under Pope Francis, so he was considered the natural front runner. 

“Whether you were enthusiastic about Francis’ Pontificate or you weren’t so enthusiastic about Francis’ Pontificate, I think all the Cardinals understood that it was a unique Papacy that the Church needed to turn the page on.”

Mercedes comments on how Cardinal Prevost’s former role in the Vatican Dicastery for Bishops and Prior General of the Augustian Order made him someone familiar with the Vatican, but his personality seems reserved and would be a strong, quiet leader. 

Dr. Pecknold agrees, saying that although this is speculation, there definitely was a desire for a Cardinal who didn’t want to be Pope but whom everybody was already familiar with, and seen as an “honest broker, who could talk to anybody”. Cardinal Prevost was seen as a figure of unity and wouldn’t play into the dialectic of being purely a liberal or conservative. He highlights how his choice of wearing traditional vestments when he first appeared on the balcony in St. Peter’s Basilica after being elected was a return to the precedent set by Popes like St. Pope John Paul II or Pope Benedict XVI. From the beginning, Prevost demonstrated that he would not simply be a continuation of the precedent of Francis, who changed the tradition, not wearing the vestments when he was elected in 2013.  

“He [Pope Leo XIV] intentionally desires a continuity with Francis’ Pontificate that doesn’t spell discontinuity with the tradition.”, says Dr. Pecknold. 

Mercedes then asks about his choice of the name “Leo” and what that means for the direction of the new Pontificate. She comments on how there has been division and confusion in the Church after Pope Francis’s Pontificate. She asks if the choice of the name is a call for unity.

Pope Leo XIV commented on Pope Leo XIII and his role in warning of the dangers of the Industrial Revolution, says Dr. Pecknold. Pope Leo the Great is also another Pope with the name of “Leo” and was the first Augustinian Pope, which would fit with Pope Leo XIV’s former role as Prior General of the Augustinian Order. “He was the first Pope to bring the teachings of St. Augustine into the Magisterium”, says Dr. Pecknold. Pope Leo III was the Pope who crowned King Charlemagne of France, so that could be a nod to Pope Leo XIV wanting to be “a friend to statemen,” again, he adds. 

Mercedes builds on the comment of Pope Leo XIV wanting to build bridges between states, similar to Pope Leo the Great. Pope Leo XIV, during his first Regina Coeli Angelus address, “I carry in my heart the sufferings of the beloved Ukrainian People. Let everything be done to achieve genuine, just, and lasting peace as soon as possible. May all prisoners and children be freed, may they return to their families…”. She says this address shows how Pope Leo XIV will lead the Church and how he can work with leaders like President Donald Trump, who similarly is pursuing peace in Ukraine and Gaza. 

Dr. Pecknold notes how the first words spoken by Pope Leo XIV were, “Peace be with you.” He is optimistic about the future because President Donald Trump of the most powerful country in the World and now the new leader of the Holy See wants peace. “Both the American president and the American Pope both converging on the same aim.”

Mercedes then leads the conversation to artificial intelligence and how the Pope will be involved in navigating the “second Industrial Revolution”, alluding to Pope Leo XIII. Dr. Pecknold comments on how, as Cardinal Prevost, he warned of the dangers of “spectacle” in the media that distorts reality. Pope Leo XIV blessed journalists at an audience and stressed their importance for human peace and prosperity. Although journalists may not agree with the Doctrines of the Church and Pope Leo XIV, he still made the effort to bless the journalists and said that what they are doing is also important and meaningful. 

Dr. Pecknold comments on how the Pope’s decision to return to the Papal Palace is a return to tradition and that his not wanting to break this tradition is a form of humility. 

Mercedes shows the comedic video of the Pope’s brother, Luis, missing his call during an interview, and the Pope’s first words being, “Why didn’t you call?” She asks what the Pope’s down-to-earth American background could mean for the Catholic Church in America. And if the Pope will visit?

“It’s delightful for Americans to think that there's an American in the Vatican. Especially after so many years thinking that the Pope is something foreign to us, but he's not something foreign to us.”, responds Dr. Pecknold. 

Mercedes then asks how the relationship between the White House and the Vatican will change.

Dr Pecknold says that he texted a friend who was at the Vatican after the election said that “Cardinal Prevost is a very nice chap.” “Pope Leo XIV will be on good terms with all statesmen, including the President of the United States,” he says.