Baylor Expert: Naming of Leo XIV Rooted in Tradition, Global Vision

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In the wake of the historic election of Pope Leo XIV, the first American to ascend to the papacy, scholars and observers alike are reflecting on the global, historical and theological implications of his early statements and symbolic choices. His decision to take the name Leo – a name not used for over a century – immediately evokes comparisons to both Leo XIII and Leo I (Leo the Great), popes known for their firm leadership and dynamic engagement with the world. Baylor University’s Elisabeth Rain Kincaid, J.D., Ph.D., director of the Institute for Faith and Learning and an expert on early modern theology and Catholic Social Thought, said choosing the name Leo is significant, especially in today’s world. 

Through his choice of name, rhetorical style and theological references, the new pope is signaling a clear vision for a Church that is simultaneously grounded in tradition and open to global dialogue, Kincaid said. In this Q&A, Kincaid examines the legacy and promise embedded in Pope Leo XIV’s emerging papacy.

Kincaid is currently at work on a monograph – “Business Ethics for a Flourishing Life: Catholic Social Thought in the Modern Workplace” – in which she argues for the continued importance of Leo XIII’s thought for modern life.

Q: What are your initial thoughts on Pope Leo XIV after hearing his Urbi et Orbi address? 

Kincaid: I think the fact that we have an American Pope who studied in Rome, who has been a missionary bishop in South America, is deeply significant. This is a man who speaks for the world. We heard him speaking Italian and Spanish in his Urbi et Orbi address, he quoted Saint Augustine, the bishop of Hippo and a great theologian of Western Christianity, and he's an Augustinian Friar, so he's making that emphasis on the Church in the whole world. He talked about this openness and being in charge of welcome and encounter, which is language he's taking from Pope Francis. He embodies an openness and engagement with different cultures and an engagement in the world in his own person and in his own experience.

Q: Having a new Pope choose the name Leo feels significant. How might Leo XIV be inspired by Leo XIII?  

Kincaid: To choose the name Leo, he's clearly turning us back to what Leo XIII did. I think a lot of it does tie to this global focus. Leo XIII followed the second-longest-serving pope after Peter, Pius IX, who was the last pope who was also a territorial ruler. But with Leo XIII’s papacy, we see an openness to engagement with the world. Leo XIII makes the shift from seeing the papacy as a secular player to being a pope who speaks to and for the world. Leo XIII is most famous for two different encyclicals: Aeterni Patris and Rerum Novarum. 

Then to have Leo XIV stand up in his first address as pope, having just taken the same name of Leo XIII, talk about the church being an open church, a church on mission, a church not bound by fear. He talks a lot about how we're not fearful, we are united, we are on a mission for the gospel. You can see how these themes of Leo XIII's papacy are starting to come out in Leo XIV’s papacy as well.

Q: Why is Rerum Novarum particularly important in this context?

Kincaid: Rerum Novarum was mind-boggling at the time; it was the first time that we had seen a pope comment on issues of economic injustice and say that this is something that the church should speak into. This is hopefully what Leo XIV has at the forefront of his mind. In Rerum Novarum, Leo XIII spends a lot of time engaging with questions about the common people, like how should the church be supporting ordinary laborers, ordinary workers. There’s a commitment to justice, a commitment to care for the poor and a commitment to engaging with the challenging questions of the day that just hadn't come out of the papacy before, that hadn't been viewed as the pope's role to speak on. Not just doctrinal issues, but big political, economic and social issues. And Rerum Novarum sets the trajectory for a whole line of scholarship called Catholic Social Thought.

Q: Does the choice of an older, less commonly used papal name reflect a desire to revive forgotten traditions or offer a fresh start? 

Kincaid: I think what's really interesting is that he's choosing an older name, a name that hasn't been used in 124 years, but also a pope who is himself a fresh start. Leo XIII created the modern role of the papacy. I think choosing Leo points to both aspects, a fresh start and looking at the modern role of the papacy. We see this again in his reference to Saint Augustine and Pope Francis, that there is a continuity and a fresh start, both at the same time. 

"I think what's really interesting is that he's choosing an older name, a name that hasn't been used in 124 years, but also a pope who is himself a fresh start. Leo XIII created the modern role of the papacy. I think choosing Leo points to both aspects, a fresh start and looking at the modern role of the papacy." - Elisabeth Rain Kincaid, J.D., Ph.D.

Q: What about a connection to Leo I? 

Kincaid: That is an interesting thing, Leo the Great is also an incredibly significant pope. Leo the Great also had this high level of political engagement. Both Leos make a very strong stand on papal authority and are viewed both as reforming figures and somewhat authoritarian figures;it’s not an unmixed legacy. 

Q: By choosing this name, is the new pope making it pretty clear what he hopes to do with his papacy? 

Kincaid: I think absolutely. When we were reading a lot of the commentary leading up to the conclave, there was a felt need of these reforms that Francis had made. This openness, this sense of evangelism that's really powerful and important, but also that's been accompanied by a lack of stability and sort of a sense of a lot of people feeling like the ground's been shifting under their feet and so it'll be interesting to have to see if Leo XIV  can incorporate sort of the administrative stability that Leo XIII and Leo the Great had. Plus, this sort of change and focus on engagement with the world. 

Is there any other symbolic significance to his choice of the name Leo? 

Kincaid: Leo XIV studied at the Angelicum in Rome, and Leo XIII established the Faculties of Philosophy and Canon Law at the Angelicum. Anybody who's been working in the Catholic social teaching world would feel like Rerum Novarum is really significant, but I do wonder if there's an additional honoring and personal connection to Leo XIII through his alma mater.  

What are your thoughts on the new pope being American? 

Kincaid: I just think this is a fascinating twist. In a sense, it's encouraging when we live in a time where there is a lot of global concern about some directions that the United States is taking. What does it do to have an American occupying the seat of the papacy? Especially when we've never had an American there before. That's going to create a really interesting dichotomy between perceptions of America as being more closed off, more isolationist, more antagonistic, and then you have an American in one of the most prominent global roles, apart from being the President of the United States, in the world. He said in his address, “So may we all walk together towards that homeland that God has prepared for us.” I think he's referencing St. Augustine and the City of God and how language and cultures are important; they’re not bad because they shape who we are, but our true identity as Christians is being part of the City of God, the homeland that we're going to. And we have to remember our national identities are always contingent and temporary. 

ABOUT ELISABETH RAIN KINCAID, J.D., PH.D.

Elisabeth Rain Kincaid, J.D., Ph.D., is the director of Baylor University's Institute for Faith and Learning (IFL). In addition to IFL, she holds appointments as Associate Professor of Ethics, Faith and Culture at Baylor’s Truett Seminary and Affiliate Professor of Management at the Hankamer School of Business. Her research focuses on the intersection of theological ethics, legal ethics and business ethics, virtue ethics, Protestant and Catholic natural law, early modern theology and Catholic Social Thought. In her teaching, she draws upon her years of experience as a white-collar criminal defense attorney and a private equity professional, along with her ministry experience. 

She is the author of Law From Below: How the Thought of Francisco Suárez, SJ, Can Renew Contemporary Legal Engagement (Georgetown University Press), in which she argues that the theology of the early modern legal theorist and theologian may provide a constructive model of legal engagement for Christians today. She is currently at work on a second book project, “Business Ethics for a Flourishing Life: Catholic Social Thought in the Modern Workplace,” which explores the relationship between business ethics and human flourishing, including the continued importance of Pope Leo XIII’s thought for modern life.

Kincaid has published broadly in peer-reviewed journals and popular publications and is a frequently invited speaker at academic campuses, churches and retreats. She is currently a Research Fellow for the Center for Religion, Culture, and Democracy. She has also been a Pedagogy Fellow at the Yale Center for Faith and Culture.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.