Pope Leo Demurs After NBC Reporter Asks About ‘Being American’

Pope Leo XIV gently pushed back after an NBC News reporter asked how important “being American” was to him, saying he sees himself first and foremost as the head of the worldwide Catholic Church rather than through the lens of his nationality.

In an interview with NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas at Castel Gandolfo in Italy, the first U.S.-born pontiff said his identity as pope takes precedence over any label related to the country of his birth, while stressing he still has “great love” for America.

“Well, first of all, just to clarify, I think of myself more as the Pope who happens to be American,” the pope said. “Not to belittle what it means to be American. I was born in the United States. My family is still in the United States. I have great love for America. But I understand my mission as having a very important dimension which is precisely being pastor of a universal church.”

“I will acknowledge that for myself as well as for the people of the United States, judging by the response that we’ve seen since May 8th of last year, that there is great significance in being the first American Pope,” he said.

Llamas asked the pontiff what he loved most about the United States, prompting the Pope to point to the country’s ideals and his own family history.

“So many things,” he said, praising America’s “sense of freedom” and “sense of opportunity” before reflecting on his heritage: “I come from a family that my grandparents were immigrants on my mother’s side. We have people who were both slaves and slave owners. There’s a history of, if you will, growing up in the kind of experience that helps me to recognize myself one of the greatest wealths of the United States.”

Before wrapping up, Llamas asked whether Americans could expect to see the pope visit the United States in the near future.

“They will see me there,” the pontiff replied. “By coincidence, today we were looking at the calendar for the next couple of years. Nothing is set in stone yet, but I certainly hope to be there soon.”

Watch above via NBC News.

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