Archbishop of New York Timothy Dolan expressed deep gratitude that Pope Leo XIV will now lead the Catholic Church for the foreseeable future complementing his leadership qualities and his ability to navigate the bureaucracy within the Church.

Writing an exclusive editorial column for the New York Post on Saturday, Dolan voiced optimism that Pope Leo will be the ideal choice to build bridges across the various faiths and address the church’s most urgent need — which is the lack of young people entering the priesthood.

On Thursday, the cardinal electors of the Catholic Church elected Chicago native Robert Francis Prevost, 69, as the first American-born Pope to lead the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. Prevost chose Leo XIV as his papal name. “Sede Vacante, the time known as ‘the empty chair’ was over. The Church once again had a ‘papa,’ a Holy Father. And we, along with the rest of the world, rejoiced,” Dolan wrote.

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