POPE LEO XIV - A Shepherd for Our Times 

By Father (Dr) Sajith Cyriac SSP

ST PAULS, Bandra West, Mumbai 400 050, India

ISBN 978-81-7108-989-5 / Year 2025 / Pp 96 / INR 150

"Peace be with you all!" were the words Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost uttered, emerging as Pope Leo XIV on the stately Central Balcony of the majestic Basilica of Saint Peter on May 8, 2025. Hitherto largely unknown beyond his hometown of Chicago in the US and his beloved mission field of Chiclayo in Peru, the new Pope seemed visibly moved at the sight unfolding before him. As the white smoke cleared, the bells of Saint Peter's pealed the commencement of a new chapter in the Church's history. The world began to speculate what man this was whom the Conclave had chosen to head the Universal Church! It is against the backdrop of such speculation that ST PAULS has come up with POPE LEO XIV, A Shepherd for Our Times, a book by its own General Editor, Fr (Dr) Sajith Cyriac SSP.

The reader is invited to take a close look at the persona of the new Pope. From the mould of Augustinian spirituality, shaped by long active missionary activity, and guided by a deep love for the Church, Pope Leo XIV comes through as a man of peace with a difference; he has obviously come not with a revolutionary mindset, but with a profound desire to continue walking the Synodal path charted by his predecessor, Pope Francis, whose papal influence and friendship are evidently foundational to Pope Leo's own vision. The book explores how Leo's papacy, formally inaugurated on May 18, 2025, is already being marked by a synthesis of tradition and renewal, contemplation and action, authority and listening. 

Fr Sajith Cyriac traces the key dimensions of the Leonine pontificate: his surprising election, his choice of name and its significance, the roots of his vocation, his theological and pastoral leanings, and the hope he embodies for a Church called to be increasingly merciful, just, and missionary by listening deeply and walking humbly, reaching boldly to the margins.

The Reflective Takeaways help understand how Pope Leo XIV's life and leadership can speak to their own journey of faith, service, and discipleship. This engaging book portrays Pope Leo XIV as not merely the 267th successor of Peter, but as a brother on the road, awakening in us the courage to hope. Enabling us to see the Church through the eyes of a shepherd who cares to listen even as he leads, this book reminds us that the heart of the Gospel still beats with simplicity and mercy on a shared journey.

 LADISLAUS LOUIS D'SOUZA