Ambassador Francis Rooney Shares Personal Insight on Historic Election of First American Pope

By Hank Stolz | Radio Worcester

Credit: Vatican Media

WORCESTER, MASS-Insight on the first American Pope from Ambassador Francis Rooney. Rooney is a former U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, appointed by President George W. Bush. He is also the author of a book titled “The Global Vatican” about diplomacy and the U.S.-Holy See relationship. Rooney has a personal relationship with the new Pope, having known him when he was Father Bob and served on the board of an Augustinian school in Tulsa. He tells Hank Stolz the election of an American Pope, Pope Leo the 14th, was unexpected and surprising, as it was previously unimaginable. The new Pope is expected to focus on issues like the global migration crisis and engaging younger people in the Church, particularly in Europe and the U.S. Rooney says “Well, any Pope and any leader of the Catholic church of any level is going to have to weigh in on behalf of the plight of migrants. We have this global migration problem, which is displacing thousands of people all around the world, and it’s a humanitarian crisis, and that’s a big thing for the church to have a voice in.” Rooney believes the new Pope’s experience in managing the Augustinian order and dealing with financial and personnel matters will be beneficial in his papacy.