Message From Your State Third Vice President

As a lover of all that’s history, April brought a love of history to our lives and as we celebrated the day our lord rose from the Dead for the forgiveness of our sins, to losing his earthy leader of the catholic faith, just he next day. Well, we now have a new leader, the first American Pope, Pope Leo XIV

There have been 14 Popes named Leo in the history of the Catholic Church. Here is a list of them, in order, with brief details:

Pope Leo I (Leo the Great)-Papacy: 440–461

Notable for: First Pope to be called “the Great” a Doctor of the Church; confronted Attila the Hun; known for theological writings and affirming papal authority.

Pope Leo II-Papacy: 682–683

Notable for: Confirmed the decisions of the Third Council of Constantinople; short papacy.

Pope Leo III-Papacy: 795–816

Notable for: Crowned Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor in 800 AD.

Pope Leo IV-Papacy: 847–856

Notable for: Fortified Rome against Arab attacks; led rebuilding of churches after Saracen raids, and built the Leonine Wall around Vatican Hill.

Pope Leo V-Papacy: 903

Notable for: Being captured after two months by a rebellious cardinal-priest, put in prison, and executed, whereupon the cardinal-priest (Christopher) had himself elected pope (an antipope)

Antipope Leo VI-Papacy claimed: 928-929

Notable for: Confirmed the decisions of the Synod of Spalato, completed investigations into irregularities in Dalmatia, and banned castrati from marrying.

Pope Leo VII-Papacy: 936-939

Notable for: Granting important privileges to monasteries, especially Cluny, and used Odo of Cluny as a mediator.

Pope Leo VIII-Papacy: 964-965

Notable for: He was an antipope the first time he was elected, but was legitimately the pope after the second election. He had in effect, been appointed by the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I, and had been granted a number of privileges by Otto.

Pope Leo IX (legitimate counting) 1049-1054

Reign reconsidered: This very significant pope was famous for a series of Easter Synods by which he issued a number of reform decrees.

Pope Leo X-Papacy: 1513-1521

Notable for: A famous Renaissance Pope from the Medici family, he sparked

controversy with Martin Luther by promoting donations in return for indulgences to reconstruct St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. He also famously used the artist Raphael in the decoration of various Vatican rooms. Then, excommunicated Martin Luther on January 3, 1521.

Pope Leo XI-Papacy: 1605

Notable for: Another from the Medici family, a nephew of Leo X Known as the

‘Lightning Pope’ because his papacy was so short, lasting only about a month. He died from exhaustion and cold after taking possession of the Basilica of St. John Lateran. .”

Pope Leo XII-Papacy: 1823–1829 April 1–27

Notable for: Serving as apostolic nuncio to Germany, prefect of the Roman Curia, and Vicar-General of Rome.

Pope Leo XIII-Papacy: 1878–1903

Notable for: Best known for initiating the practice of writing encyclicals which addressed the Church’s understanding of the common good in the world, and especially the rights and dignities of the human person—in other words, social encyclicals, the most famous of which was Rerum Novarum

Among his more interesting documents is Libertas of 1888. It saved the best for the ending:  “Neither does the Church condemn those who, if it can be done without violation of justice, wish to make their country independent of any foreign or despotic power. Nor does she blame those who wish to assign to the State the power of self-government, and to its citizens the greatest possible measure of prosperity. The Church has always most faithfully fostered civil liberty.”.

Pope Leo XIV-Papacy: 2025 - present

Chose his name: to honor Leo XIII’s legacy, particularly his emphasis on social justice.

Alan Spano

https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/popes-named-leo-13-predecessors/