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New Pope Leo XIV has long Polish ties through the Augustinians, Kraków visits

09.05.2025 13:00
Pope Leo XIV, the U.S.‑born Augustinian who succeeded Pope Francis this week, knows Poland well, having visited Kraków “many times” as the order’s global head to mediate disputes and meet fellow friars, Polish provincial superior Fr Beniamin Kuczała told RMF FM radio on Friday.
New cardinal Robert Francis Prevost during a consistory ceremony in Saint Peters Square, Vatican City, 30 September 2023 (re-issued 08 May 2025). Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected Pope Leo XIV on 08 May 2025.
New cardinal Robert Francis Prevost during a consistory ceremony in Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City, 30 September 2023 (re-issued 08 May 2025). Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected Pope Leo XIV on 08 May 2025. EPA/GIUSEPPE LAMI

The 69‑year‑old pontiff, born Robert Prevost, spent more than two decades as a missionary in South America and became a Peruvian citizen in 2015.

He led the Order of St Augustine for 12 years before Pope Francis brought him to the Vatican as a cardinal.

“Kraków’s historic centre enchanted him,” Kuczała said, recalling visits when Leo XIV praised the city’s medieval architecture.

Order with deep Polish roots

The Augustinians—founded in 1256 and known for their black habit and work among the poor—first arrived in Kraków in 1342 at the invitation of King Casimir III the Great.

Despite a decline during the Reformation and the closure of most monasteries under Russian rule and again in 1950, the order was revived in the 1980s and now runs two houses in Kraków and one in Łomianki near Warsaw.

Worldwide the order counted roughly 2,800 friars in 148 European monasteries and dozens more on other continents as of 2006.

Notable Augustinians have included Martin Luther, geneticist Gregor Mendel and several cardinals and bishops. Leo XIV once said he sees himself “above all as a missionary,” a role likely to shape his papacy, Vatican watchers say.

(jh)

Source: RMF24