Yesterday afternoon May 8, 2025, in the Marian month, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected and climbed the papal throne with the name of Leone XIV. I clarify to readers why he took this pontifical name, without forgetting that the new pope belongs to the order of the Augustinians. But the choice of the name is to be referred to a memorable historical fact, I immediately say that it did it out of gratitude to Pope Leo XIII who actually saved the order in Europe at the end of the nineteenth century.
Here are some recent history. Decline and restoration of the order.
The period started in 1786, when the emperor Joseph II deleted most of
And convents in Habsburg countries, he was one of the most difficult for order: numerous Augustinian communities of Europe and Latin America were dispersed and their assets forfeited by the state. Only convents in the Philippines and the United States of America were not affected by the suppression movement
In 1881 Pope Leo XIII called the Italian Government the Italian Antonio Pacifico Neno who had worked for a long time in the United States: Neno reopened a novitiate in Italy and launched a great vocational campaign; New missions were also started and the provinces reorganized. Which wanted to say that Pope Leo XIII reopened and flourished in Europe and in Italy the convents of the Order of the Augustinians.
At that time the Pope appointed Cardinals three Augustinians and started the causes of beatification of numerous Augustinians. The Augustinian friars dedicate themselves to various forms of apostolate, according to the needs of the Church.
They are present in Europe, Africa, Americas, Asia and Australia. The prior general of the order lies in Rome. At 31 December 2008 the order counted 448 convents and 2 769 friars, 2 052 of which priests.
In his first speech by Pope, Robert Francis Prevost specified among other things of belong to the order of Sant’Agostino, saying “a son of Sant’Agostino, Augustinian”. The order in question is a religious order that follows the teachings and approaches attributed to Sant’Agostino, a very important philosopher who lived in North Africa and in Italy between the quarter and fifth century. Prevost is therefore technically also a friar – the friars are the members of the religious orders, even if Prevost is first of all a priest – and it is the first pontiff who comes from the Augustinians.
Today the order of Sant’Agostino has 2,800 members in 47 countries and is mainly dedicated to missionary, educational and hospital activities: Prevost himself studied in Augustinian institutions and has been missionary for years in Peru, where he also dealt with teaching.
Carlo Franza