Pope Leo XIV’s brother John Prevost said Leo was “very close” to Pope Francis when the late pontiff was alive.
In an exclusive interview with NBC Chicago on Friday, John Prevost answered a host of questions about his younger brother on topics ranging from the mundane to the mystifying.
When asked what it was about his brother that signaled he might become pope in the wake of Francis’ death, Prevost said many things were in his favor, including the time he served in Peru, his experience as a prior general with global authority over the Order of St. Augustine, and being multilingual.
What stood out to Prevost, however, is that his brother was called up first by Francis when he was made a cardinal along with 20 other prelates in 2023.
“What was the pope saying, by calling him up first?” remarked Prevost.
NBC 5 political reporter Mary Ann Ahern then asked if Leo was close to Francis. Prevost assured her, “Very close. They were very good friends.”
One of Leo’s friends, Rev. Tony Pizzo, spoke similarly to The New York Times in May, sharing at the time, “Pope Leo spoke of Pope Francis as a good friend.”
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