León XIV revealed that he was about to leave the priesthood to start a family.

Robert Prevost,proclaimed Pope with the name of Leo XIV last Thursday, May 8, shared that in his youth he seriously considered leaving the priesthood to marry and have children.

In an interview given while he was still a cardinal, he recounted that he went through an intense process of discernment. "Sometimes I talked to my father about the doubts I had, like thinking: 'Maybe it's better to leave this life and get married, have children.' A, let's say, normal life," he recalled.

He said that those conversations with his father marked his spiritual path. "When he spoke to me in such a human and deep way, I felt that I had to listen and reflect seriously," he acknowledged. It was that intimate dialogue that helped him solidify his decision.

Prevost also said that  he grew up in a Catholic family, close to the parish.  That community experience, along with the influence of the diocesan priests he met, was the seed of his vocation. Then, upon encountering the Augustinians, he felt that his path was clearer.

A childhood marked by an early vocation

His brother, John Prevost, recalled that from a young age they showed different interests. While he played with toy guns, Robert was already attracted to the liturgy and dreamed of giving communion.  That early inclination reinforced his religious destiny.

Despite the doubts he had in his youth, the now pontiff chose the religious life with conviction and remained faithful to his vocation until reaching the highest position within the Catholic Church.

Leo XIV: the first American Pope

Robert Prevost, 69 years old, became the first North American to assume the throne of Saint Peter. He was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago and was ordained a priest in 1982.

He studied Mathematical Sciences at Villanova University and then obtained a master's degree in Divinity at the "Catholic Theological Union." Later, he earned a doctorate in Canon Law at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas.

His pastoral career took him in 1985 to the Augustinian mission in Peru. Two years later he was appointed director of vocations and missions of the Augustinian province "Mother of Good Counsel" in Illinois. In 1988 he was assigned to Trujillo as a formator of aspirants for the vicariates of Apurímac, Chulucanas, and Iquitos.

In 2019, Pope Francis incorporated him into the Congregation for the Clergy. Four years later, in 2023, he appointed him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

Leo XIV reached the papacy after a life of dedication, marked by sincere doubts, a deep faith, and a family history that anchored him to the Church from a young age.