On Thursday a group of Catholic cardinals elected Cardinal Robert Prevost as the newest leader of the Catholic Church.

The new Pope has chosen the name Leo XIV. Head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nassau, the Most Rev. Patrick Pinder welcomed the election of the new Pope and explained that Pope Leo XIII was known for the development of the social teachings of the church.

Pope Leo XIV is the first American to be elected to the papacy. Pinder said, “while he is certainly an American by birth I think that’s an aspect of his biography. I think though the total picture is much, much broader than that.”

On whether the papacy of the new Pope will resemble that of his predecessor Pope Francis Pinder said, “I do believe that he certainly will embrace the best of Pope Francis had but I don’t think his pontificate will be an imitation of Pope Francis. The characters are very, very different. You can see that he doesn’t have the same personality as Pope Francis but I do believe that he will bring forward the best of the previous pontificate and also bring what his own charism to the office of the papacy.”

Archbishop Pinder has never met the new Pope but revealed that a meeting of the Pope with the Bishops of the Catholic Church is being planned.