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Inside story of how 'Bob' became the first American pope
Original: No one expected an American pope. Here's the inside story of how 'Bob' became Pope Leo https://www.npr.org/2026/10/03/nx
A new NPR account details the unlikely rise of an American cardinal, known informally as 'Bob', to the papacy as Pope Leo — an outcome few in the Vatican or the wider Catholic world had anticipated. The excerpt recounts the behind-the-scenes maneuvering that led to the first US-born pope being elected, a moment many observers once considered nearly impossible given American geopolitical dominance.
Why now: Fresh revelations about how the conclave produced the first American pope are drawing wide attention.
Pope LeoNPRCatholic ChurchVatican
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- No one expected an American pope. Here's the inside story of how 'Bob' became Pope Leo https://www.npr.org/2026/10/03/nx-s1-5987816/pope-leo-american-pope-book-excerpt # History # Religion # Biography · npr_culture@robot.villas · 2
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