Pope Leo: I think of myself more as the pope who happens to be American

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Pope Leo XIV makes a speech at the end of a concert in Borgo Laudato Si, a 55-hectare educational and environmental center, at Castel Gandolfo on July 29, 2026. (Photo by Isabella BONOTTO / AFP)

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Pope Leo XIV has “great love” for the United States and what it stands for but doesn’t define himself as American, the Chicago-born pope told NBC in an interview.

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Leo, the first pope from the United States, spoke Wednesday night to the US broadcaster on the sidelines of a prayer event with music at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence.

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“I think of myself more as the pope who happens to be American. Not to belittle what it means to be an American,” said the pope, when asked how important it was to him being American.

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“I have great love for America but I understand my mission as having a very important dimension, which is precisely being pastor of a universal church and having a voice and an opportunity to speak to people throughout the world,” added Leo, who spent nearly two decades as a missionary in Peru.

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Asked what the 70-year-old loved about America, he responded, “so many things”.

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“In a sense, speaking about principles, what America stands for, the sense of freedom, the sense of opportunity, the sense of having invited, for generations, people from around the world to be part of America,” said Leo, adding that his grandparents were immigrants.

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On his mother’s side, Leo added, “we have people who were both slaves and slave owners.”

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Leo, like his predecessor Francis, has repeatedly spoken up for migrants during his nascent papacy, calling the Trump administration’s treatment of immigrants in the United States “inhuman”.

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On July 4th, Independence Day in the United States, he visited Italy’s island of Lampedusa — a major entry point to Europe for those crossing the dangerous Mediterranean from Africa — urging tolerance and protection for the vulnerable migrants, many of whom die during the journey.

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Leo told NBC that no trip had yet been planned for the United States, but he hoped to visit “soon”.

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The event in the gardens of Castel Gandolfo, over which Leo presided, was part of celebrations for the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi.

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Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, accompanied by young singers from around the world, sang various works, including “Amazing Grace” in English and the hymn set to music, “Panis Angelicus”.

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AFP

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