Something extraordinary is happening in the Catholic Church, and America is at the center of it.
For the first time in the two-thousand-year history of the Catholic Church, an American has been elected pope. Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago, has brought the story of American Catholicism into a new and remarkable chapter in the life of the universal Church.
Now, we are beginning to see that chapter take shape in other ways as well.
Who did Pope Leo XIV appoint to the Vatican on August 25?
On August 25, Pope Leo XIV appointed Patrick Kelly, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life. The dicastery serves the lay faithful, families, and the protection and support of human life, and its members participate in plenary sessions and vote on decrees.
Kelly, an American Catholic layman whose life has been devoted to faith, service, and leadership, will now bring that experience to the work of the universal Church.
What does this appointment mean for American Catholics?
His appointment is meaningful not simply because an American has been given an important responsibility, but because of what it represents.
Why the Foundation is watching these moments closely
The Pope Leo XIV American Legacy Foundation was established to preserve and honor the Chicago-area sites that shaped Robert Francis Prevost — the childhood home in Dolton, the parish where he was baptized and formed in faith, and the broader South Side communities that made him who he is. Every appointment, every signal from Rome, is part of the same unfolding story that began on the streets of the Chicago metropolitan area.
To learn more about the people, places, and mission behind this work, visit the Foundation’s founding declaration and mission. If you feel moved to support the preservation of these historic American Catholic sites, you can make a gift to the Foundation here.
For more information on the Kelly appointment, see the original report from EWTN News.