VATICAN CITY (RNS) — From the moment Pope Leo XIV emerged from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, church observers have sought comparisons between the new, U.S.-born pontiff and his predecessor Pope Francis.
Vatican experts who worked closely with Pope Francis have underlined the close relationship between the two men, which they believe signals a shared vision for the church, despite different approaches. Andrea Riccardi, a church historian and diplomat, and founder of the lay Catholic Community of St. Egidio, said he believes Francis himself anointed then-Cardinal Robert Prevost, the future Pope Leo XIV, as his successor.
Riccardi, who worked closely with the Holy See and Pope Francis on diplomacy efforts, traveled with the pope and helped to negotiated peace treaties in many countries, including Mozambique and Guatemala.
“I have the suspicion, I don’t have the proof, that in the last years Bergoglio thought of (Prevost) to succeed him,” he said, speaking at a press conference at the Foreign Press Association in Rome on Tuesday (June 10).
Riccardi, the author of several books on the church and society, acknowledged that with the exception of Pope Pius XI, no pope was able to choose his successor. “Did Prevost want to become pope?” Riccardi asked, citing Francis’ belief that only the i …