Pope Leo XIV’s Deep Mercy Roots: A Connection to the Sisters of Mercy and Mercy Education

Photo by Edgar Beltrán, The Pillar (Source and License)

As the Catholic Church celebrates the election of Pope Leo XIV, our Mercy Education community finds special meaning in his story, one that echoes our values and connects in unique ways to the mission of Mercy.

Pope Leo XIV was born on the South Side of Chicago in a hospital founded by the Sisters of Mercy, beginning a lifelong connection to Mercy values and ministries. These roots run deep — especially through his family and personal experiences within the Mercy community.

His mother’s sister, Sister Mary Sulpice Martinez, RSM (pictured at left), was a Sister of Mercy in Chicago. She graduated from St. Xavier Academy in Chicago, Illinois – today known as Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School. She entered the community at the age of 19 and earned a bachelor’s degree in French from St. Xavier University, a college sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy. Sister Mary Sulpice dedicated more than 38 years to Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Chicago, with her final teaching ministry at Mother McAuley.

This personal connection is deeply felt by many in the Mother McAuley community. Carey Harrington, President of Mother McAuley, shared, “So many of our teachers, parents and students have a connection to Pope Leo. He has been in many of their houses, confirmed them and celebrated important Masses.”

From his earliest words as pope, Leo XIV has signaled a clear commitment to peace, dialogue and bridge-building — an inspiring alignment with the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concern for Nonviolence. His choice of name may also be meaningful. In choosing “Leo,” he may be honoring Pope Leo XIII, author of Rerum Novarum, the foundational document of modern Catholic Social Teaching. If so, this offers yet another powerful link to our mission in Mercy schools: forming students in faith, compassion and justice.

What might these Mercy connections mean for the cause for canonization of Catherine McAuley? Only time will tell — but the intersections are striking and hope-filled.

Additional connections between Pope Leo XIV and the Sisters of Mercy are highlighted in this article from the Sisters of Mercy.

As we pray for Pope Leo XIV in these early days of his leadership, we give thanks for these meaningful intersections. May his papacy be one of mercy, rooted in peace, justice and a deep love for God and God’s people.