Pope Leo will be formally inaugurated as the next Pope on May 18, and the 69-year-old American, born in Chicago, Illinois, will likely have the role until his death.
As with any job, Pope Leo will receive a salary, while companies and others profit from the Pope through merchandise. Reportedly, a new trading card of Pope Leo has been released, and it has broken a sensational sales record, even trumping sports stars.
Only two days after the conclave of Catholic cardinals met in Vatican City, locking themselves in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope, the smoke on top of the building turned white. On May 8, a new pope was elected. American Robert Prevost appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to the roar of thousands of people gathered in St Peter’s Square.
He took the name Leo XIV, making him the 13th pope to do so. During his balcony appearance, Leo gave a ceremonial speech to Catholics worldwide, beginning with the words, “Peace be with you.”
Leo continued: “Dearest brothers and sisters, this was the first greeting of the risen Christ, the good shepherd who gave his life for the flock of God. I, too, would like this greeting of peace to enter your hearts, to reach your families and all people, wherever they are; and all the peoples, and all the earth: Peace be with you.”
“This is the peace of the Risen Christ, a disarming and humble and preserving peace. It comes from God. God, who loves all of us, without any limits or conditions. Let us keep in our ears the weak but always brave voice of Pope Francis, who blessed Rome – the Pope who blessed Rome and the world that day on the morning of Easter.”
Pope Leo XIV
Pope Leo XIV also thanked his “cardinal brothers” for choosing him as Pope. He sent a special greeting to the Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, where he served as Bishop between 2014 and 2023.
“To all the faithful here present, and to all those who receive his blessing through the radio, through television, and other technologies of communication. You can recognise him in the way recognised by the church,” the Pope concluded. “Let us hope that he’s preserved for a long time and ensure peace to the church throughout the world.”
Like many popes before him, Pope Leo’s choice divided reactions. Many believe he is the right person to modernize the Catholic Church, while others think it is not needed or that the church should strive for something else.
Rightly or wrongly, the conclave is not just about religion but also politics, as the cardinals have different opinions and beliefs about the Catholic church. One block is more conservative, the other more progressive. On Monday, Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, who has been somewhat named a “titan” for the conservatives, responded to Leo’s election.
Per PBS, Mueler said he was pleased with the election, and hopes Pope Leo will heal and restore unity among Catholics and cardinals. Pope Francis had previously fired Mueller as the Vatican’s doctrinal chief after he had questioned the then-pope’s attempts to create a more inclusive church.
“I am convinced that he will overcome these superfluous tensions (which were) damaging for the church,” Mueller told the Associated Press. “We cannot avoid all the conflicts, but we have to avoid the not necessary conflicts, the superfluous conflicts.”
Pope Leo made a “good impression,” cardinal says
As of today, conservative cardinals are in the minority. At Francis’ death, there were 252 cardinals, with 135 electors. Late Pope Francis appointed 108 of the 135 cardinal electors. As he was outspoken about the Church having to modernize in many ways, it makes sense that those cardinal electors he appointed weren’t conservative.
“I think it was a good impression of him to everybody, and in the end it was a great concordia, a great harmony,” Mueller continued. “There was no polemics, no fractionizing.”
Pope Francis did question and criticize traditionalist Catholics for trying to “safeguard the ashes” of the past. Once, he said Catholic “fundamentalists” had a nostalgia for “returning to the ashes.”
“Tradition is the guarantee of the future and not the container of the ashes,” Pope Francis said. “Tradition is like roots [of a tree], which give us nutrition to grow,” he explained. “You will not become like the roots. You will flower, grow, give fruit. And the seeds become roots for other people. The tradition of the church is always in movement,” he said. “The tradition does not safeguard the ashes.”
The conclave only took two days to decide the new pope, and despite the fact that Mueller might be more conservative, he is optimistic about Pope Leo’s future.
“We cannot absolutely condemn or forbid the legitimate right and form of the Latin liturgy,” Mueller explained. “According to his character, I think (Leo) is able to speak with people and to find a very good solution that is good for everybody.”
He wouldn’t reveal who he voted for.
“Oh, I cannot say. But I am content, no?” Mueller concluded.
Pope was called “woke” by MAGA movement
As stated, there are differing opinions among the cardinals regarding Pope Leo. But that also applies to those interested in politics, and the loudest has been the MAGA movement in the US.
Prevost publicly criticized VP JD Vance not long ago and expressed sympathy for immigrants and George Floyd. As per Independent, one MAGA supporter stated Leo was a “woke Marxcist Pope,” adding that he is “worse than Francis.”
Alt-right conspiracy theorist Mike Cernovich took to X, writing, “Sorry, Catholics. This new Pope is an open borders globalist. He will be pushing for abortion soon. This isn’t a guess. You can scroll his X account and see what he’s been up to.”
Pro-Trump social media personality Joe Mannarino mentioned that Pope Leo had previously attacked JD Vance and “begged Trump to open the borders like Biden had them.” He added that “this guy is worse than Francis,” and called Leo a “liberal piece of s***” and insisted that “we’re f**cked.”
MAGA influencer Vince Langman was in rage after Pope Leo XIV had been elected, bringing up a 2015 tweet from Prevost where he criticized Trump’s anti-immigrant statements.
“He’s a WOKE Never Trumper liberal. That’s why!” Langman wrote.
Even before the election, supporters of the MAGA movement showed their disapproval over the idea of Provost becoming Pope. Former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon told Piers Morgan last week: “I do think one of the dark horses — and unfortunately one of the most progressive — is Cardinal Prevost… he’s certainly on the shortlist.”
Merchandise and other souvenirs have always been a big part of tourism, sports, and music events. People buy small key rings of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and if you go to New York City, you can find “I Love NY” t-shirts everywhere. A shirt or hat of your favorite band is always fun to keep as a memory, or perhaps you drink your morning coffee out of a mug from your favorite sports team?
Pope Leo trading card sets new record
There’s no end to the options, and if you thought that there wouldn’t be Pope Leo merchandise hitting the shelves after he was elected, you were mistaken. As per NBC, t-shirts and other various items of Leo were up for sale shortly after the election result went public.
Topps, an American company that manufactures trading cards and other collectibles, has released a trading card of the first US-born Pope.
Just as if you’d buy a trading card of an NBA player or a baseball player, you could get your hands on a trading card of Pope Francis. And it’s safe to say sales didn’t disappoint.
Several sites reported that Topps, the company behind the trading cards, has revealed that Pope Leo’s reading card has set a record for any non-sports card released by Topps. The card, which was sold for a limited time from Thursday through Sunday, sold 133,535 units and was listed at $8.99 per card.
That blew away certain other notable sets sold at Topps. For example, NBA star Lebron James’ card, when he exceeded 40,000 career points, sold a total of 86,72 units. Victor Wembanyama’s card when he was named NBA Rookie of the Year sold 113,777.
Long way to the top
This isn’t the first time a Pope has got his own trading card. As per The Guardian, when Pope Francis visited Philadelphia in 2015, the Philadelphia Phillies released their own Pope Francis “rookie card.” In 1909, Chocolat Guerin-Boutron produced their own card for Pope Leo XIII.
While Leo might have broken a record, his isn’t the most-bought card of all time. After baseball player Shohei Ohtani became the first MLB player to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season, his card sold 653,737 units.
Who knows, maybe Pope Leo will get there in the future?
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