Pope Leo XIV is the first Augustinian pope. A New Jersey professor explains why he's the right choice.
Pope Leo XIV's election marks a monumental occasion and historical significance for the Augustinian order. The new pontiff is the first Augustinian to lead the Roman Catholic Church.
Once Pope Leo XIV walked onto the balcony over St. Peter's Square, a wave of pride started moving through the halls and classrooms at St. Augustine Prep in Richland, New Jersey.
"We announced it immediately over the loudspeaker and said it's an Augustinian, and you just could feel the excitement in the school," Father Robert Murray, the head of school at St. Augustine, said.
In 2009, long before becoming a cardinal, then-Father Robert Prevost was on campus marking the 50th anniversary of the Prep, and he celebrated Mass with students.
Murray, the head of the school, said he also attended Villanova University, and the new pope was his classmate.
"He's one of those when you're in a group of people, he was quieter and more reserved," Murray said, "but when he spoke, you listened. Funny, great sense of humor, and I think the world is going to see that. Some of my friends have his cellphone number. They have his email address. I have to call them and get it."
Many people have said they never thought they would see an American as a pope, but here on St. Augustine's campus, a theology professor said he had a strong feeling that Pope Leo XIV was the right man for the job.
"I teared up," Brendan Towell, who is also the school's director of engagement, said. "The connection that I had with him was so personal."
Towell said he met the new pope in 2010 at an Augustinian youth gathering and had the opportunity to speak with him.
"I shared my mind, I shared my heart with him, and in that time, he really listened and he took the time for me," Towell said.
Nearly two weeks ago, Towell says he penned a letter, which was a reflection on what he believes the church needs now, and what it would mean to elect an Augustinian as pope. He wrote that Prevost had the qualities to be the next pontiff.
The letter was published on the Augustinian's website, and Towell says he was told it landed in the hands of Cardinal Prevost before the doors of the Conclave were sealed.
"The message to me was one of thanks that he was humbled by what I said," Towell said, "and he asked me to pray for him and for the cardinals."
The Augustinian order is rooted in the values of Veritas, Unitas and Caritas, which mean truth, unity and love.
Those are the same values instilled in students at St. Augustine, and principles many believe Pope Leo XIV will live by and lead by.
"It's amazing to see that the whole world is going to experience and be exposed to those values as well," one student said.
"God selected Pope Leo XIV for a reason, and I believe he wants that Augustinian lens to be brought to the world," Murray said.
