On May 8, the election of Cardinal Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, as the first pontiff from the USA was a shock to the faithful.

Contemporary wisdom was that an American could not be elected, because of the military, economic, and political power of the U.S. The theory was that since so much power is concentrated in the U.S., it would destabilize the world order by putting such a powerful global office in the hands of an American.

The global shock waves of such a huge break in tradition would soon be followed by shock waves in New Orleans. Jari Honora, a historian and genealogist with the Historic New Orleans Collection, upon hearing the pope’s name and his birthplace of Chicago, started looking at genealogical records. 

Soon after beginning his investigation, Honora discovered that the pope’s maternal grandmother, Louise Baquie, was born in New Orleans in 1868. She would later marry Joseph Martinez, a cigar-maker, in 1887. Martinez listed Haiti as his birthplace on their wedding certificate, however his birth certificate has not been located, so his exact birthplace is not certain. They moved to Chicago in 1910, where the pope’s mother Mildred Martinez was born in 1911. Mildred, a librarian, married Louis Prevost, a school teacher, principal, and superintendent. On September 14, 1955, Robert Prevost, the future Pope Leo XIV, was born. 

Further review of genealogical records shows that the pope’s maternal grandparents are listed as either Black or mulatto in census documents. The consensus analysis of the local genealogical community is that the pope is descended from an established Black Creole family in New Orleans. His Black Creole ancestors resided in the 7th Ward, a neighborhood well known as the home of a large population of free people of color pre-dating the Civil War. 

The migration of the Martinez family from New Orleans to Chicago in 1910 coincided with the strict enforcement of Jim Crow laws in Louisiana, including the “one-drop rule,” where even residents who appeared white could face discrimination and loss of rights if any official records listed Black ancestry. Many Black Louisiana residents migrated to the more tolerant neighborhoods of Chicago for a fresh start.

So what does the elevation of Cardinal Robert Prevost to Pope Leo XIV mean for New Orleans Catholics? Some effects of his election will be experienced by all U.S. Catholics, while others will be unique to New Orleans. 

The first effect will be an increased interest in the papacy, as evidenced by the spike in Google searches, and perhaps an increase in interest in the U.S. Church. This comes at a time when church membership was declining in the U.S., while increasing in developing areas such as Africa. 

The second effect will be a change in communication style in the Vatican. While modern popes speak multiple languages and usually have some fluency in English, Pope Leo is the first Pope who speaks English as his first language. The ability of the pope to speak directly to U.S. Catholics in their native language will be a major change in how the faithful interact with the Vatican. 

Catholics within the Archdiocese of New Orleans will soon experience more direct effects of this new papal administration. The current archbishop, Gregory Aymond, has already submitted his resignation, as he has reached the mandatory retirement age of 75. Aymond has offered to delay retirement as archbishop while he settles a bankruptcy case resulting from the archdiocese paying claims to child abuse victims. While Aymon’s exact departure date is unknown, it is expected to be soon. 

Coincidentally, Cardinal Prevost’s job before becoming pope was Prefect of the Dicastery of Bishops. This office oversees the selection of new bishops. In this position, he would have been aware of any upcoming archbishop vacancies and been in the process of reviewing qualifications in order to make appointment recommendations to the pope. 

It is highly probable that Pope Leo, a highly educated canon lawyer and academic, known to monitor U.S. media and public affairs, is already aware of the national media coverage of his ancestral ties to New Orleans. 

Based on both his personal and professional background, we can expect him to take a special interest in who becomes the new Archbishop of New Orleans. As the archdiocese finally emerges from the dark period of child abuse scandals, local Catholics have high hopes that the new pope with Creole ties will select church leadership capable of ushering in a period of transparency and stability within the church. 

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Robert Collins is a professor of Urban Studies and Public Policy at Dillard, where he holds the Conrad N. Hilton Endowed Professorship. He previously held positions as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences...