As there world reacts to the election of the first American pope, some in southcentral Kentucky are predicting he will work as a bridge-builder around the world and within the church.

Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as the 267th leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday, the first American to ascend to the papacy. As Catholics in Vatican City and around the world welcomed the new Pope Leo XIV, many are wondering the direction he will take in leading the nearly 1.5 billion-strong Catholic Church.

Larry Snyder, who served as a religious studies professor at Western Kentucky University, shared his thoughts on Leo’s ascension.

“It’s hard for Americans, I think, to understand how diverse the Roman Catholic Church is,” Snyder said, pointing to linguistic and cultural differences in the church. “There’s much more theological diversity within the Roman Catholic Church that folks would sort of recognize, so it wouldn’t be at all surprising to me that they were looking for someone who could repair some of those bridges.”

The Rev. Randy Howard of Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Bowling Green agrees.

“Some of (the cardinals) were saying that they thought that the church needed a peacemaker, someone who could try to unify and bridge the gap between polarization that has happened,” he said. “My hunch is that it has more to do with that than where he’s from.”

Originally from Chicago, the 69-year-old Prevost lived for years in Peru, where he worked as a missionary and later as an archbishop. Prevost came to the Vatican in 2023 after Pope Francis picked him to lead the office that vets bishop nominations around the world, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

Commentators from around the world have predicted Prevost’s papacy may continue the reforms instituted by Francis. Snyder said that Prevost’s short time spent at the Vatican before becoming pope signals Francis “saw something” in him.

“I would not expect a radical break from Francis,” Snyder said. “It remains to be seen how far Leo will go, particularly on social issues such as LGBTQ inclusion within the church. If he’ll strike the same kind of tone as Francis, it’s hard to know, … but I expect that he’s going to continue to sort of voice, be a voice for inclusion within the church.”

As the cardinals entered conclave on May 7, Prevost’s name was not included in most predictions of who would be elected pope.

In his first appearance after being elected, Leo addressed a crowd of faithful in St. Peter’s Square speaking in both Italian and Spanish. Leo’s speech opened with the phrase “peace be with you.”

As for the impact Leo will have on the church, Howard said it’s hard to say.

“Certainly what we believe, not only about the election of the Pope but ultimately about the whole guidance of the whole church, is God’s in charge,” Howard said.

Though many believe Leo will serve as a peace agent in the church, Snyder said being the first American pope is still significant.

“I think for the 20% of Americans who identify themselves as Catholic these days, it’s a momentous day,” Snyder said. “It will be a boon for Catholics, I think, in the United States.”