Fr. John Nahrgang and Fr. Fernando Camou, two priests from the Diocese of Phoenix, were among the thousands packed into St. Peter’s Square when the historic selection of Cardinal Robert Prevost, an American from Chicago who had lived and served in Peru for a number of years before moving to Rome, was announced May 8.
Ordained in 2018, Fr. Nahrgang served as parochial vicar of Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral in Phoenix before becoming the diocese’s vicar for evangelization and education in 2021. He is currently in Rome for further studies in theology, specifically Mariology, the study of doctrines pertaining to Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Ordained in 2015, Fr. Camou served as parochial vicar of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Avondale, Ariz., before becoming rector at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral. In 2023, Bishop John Dolan asked him to join the faculty of Nazareth Seminary, the new, expanded local seminary for the diocese’s future priests, which began in 2019 and will be fully operational in Fall 2026. Fr. Camou is now in Rome, working full time on his Doctorate in Liturgical Theology.
Here are their recollections of being witnesses in Rome to the historic papal choice.
Where were you when you heard Pope Leo XIV’s introduction and what thoughts or emotions were going through your mind at the time? Were you with fellow priests or students?
Fr. Nahrgang:
I had stepped outside a restaurant near St. Peter’s Square where I was having an early dinner with a few pilgrim friends and was waiting for a scheduled phone call when white smoke emerged from the Sistine Chapel. I didn’t see the smoke, but I heard a sudden roar from the crowd in the square. I ran back into the restaurant, and we scrambled to pay the bill and make our way to the square.
We were among a crush of people trying to pass barriers and security checkpoints. I was in the middle of St. Peter’s Square when Cardinal Prevost was introduced. I clearly heard his name and repeated it aloud in shock and excitement — an American pope! I was mostly surrounded by Italians, and they began asking me, ‘Who?’
I started to explain in Italian to them the basic details of who he was. A missionary, an American who had actually served as a bishop in South America, a Vatican official with a lot of international experience. All of us could not believe an American had been elected pope. We were all still in a state of disbelief.
One of the Italians then said, “Wait … are you an American?” And I said, “Yes, I am an American, and I can’t believe we now have an American pope!”
Fr. Camou:
After weaving and squeezing my way for 30 minutes through one of the largest crowds I’ve ever seen, I found myself in the shadow of St. Peter’s Basilica, only a few dozen yards from the great church’s façade.
Within about 10 minutes of settling into my spot, white smoke came, about 6:10 P.M. local time. I was absolutely shocked! I had expected more black smoke but just wanted to be present and to be better prepared to find a good spot the next day.
My heart rate went up and I felt jittery all over. It is hard to put into words what it means to go days without a pope and to suddenly know our prayers for a new pope have been answered.
The emotion I felt certainly was a function of knowing that the selection of our new pope was wrapped in prayer and steeped in tradition. I generally did not feel very “in the know” about the cardinal electors and the various likely candidates. And this was somewhat intentional since this is not like a political election in the U.S. Senate. The ancient ceremony and ritual, the heavy weight of the sacredness and the mystery that surrounds the conclave, speaks to the otherworldliness of the selection of a pope.
After the famous Latin words, “Habemus papam!” (“We have a pope!”) the Cardinal Protodeacon of the College of Cardinals said the name of the selected cardinal, … ”Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Prevost!”
I recognized the name right away but did not know much about him. My heart rate didn’t really settle. I remained in nervous excitement about the pope I have yet to get to know.
Had you ever met Cardinal Prevost (now Pope Leo XIV)? If so, what were the circumstances and your impressions? If not, what are your impressions of him?
Fr. Nahrgang:
I have never met Cardinal Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV. I first learned about him when Pope Francis named him a cardinal and appointed him Prefect of the Dicastery of Bishops in 2023. I remember being very impressed at that time to learn that he had served not only as a missionary but as a bishop in South America. That is a very, very rare thing for a priest from the United States. But that was about the extent of it, it was a headline in Church news that was quickly eclipsed by other headlines. Like so many, I am now just beginning to learn more.
Fr. Camou:
Seeing Pope Leo XIV come out on the balcony above my head was the first time I had ever seen the man, Cardinal Prevost.
These were my unfiltered thoughts:
He looks like a pope! By the gulping and twitching of his throat and the twinkle in his eyes, he is clearly full of emotion: very human. There is a quiet kindness in him. He seems to be owning his role as the universal Church’s pope and as the local Bishop of Rome with humble confidence and eloquence in his speech. He has excellent command of the Latin, Italian and Spanish he spoke on the balcony. He was thoughtful enough to have prepared remarks in so short a time. At the same time, he does not seem to take himself too seriously, willing also to speak off the cuff a bit.
As we move forward in the world in which we live, with a new pope, what are your hopes and prayers for our Church?
Fr. Nahrgang:
I was blessed to be on my first pilgrimage to Lourdes right before the start of the conclave with a wonderful group of pilgrims from the Western Association of the Order of Malta (with so many from the Diocese of Phoenix!) As the week went on, the Lord moved me more and more to pray that all of the cardinals would open their hearts and minds fully to the voice of the Holy Spirit in voting for the new pope. Right before I departed Lourdes for Rome, I was drawn especially to a mosaic of the descent of the Holy Spirit over Mary and the Apostles at Pentecost which is in the lower church of the Shrine of Lourdes.
While waiting to board the flight to Rome, I read the homily of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, which he gave during the Mass for the cardinals just before the conclave started: We read in the Acts of the Apostles that after Christ’s ascension into heaven and while waiting for Pentecost, all were united and persevering in prayer together with Mary, the mother of Jesus (Acts 1:14).
This is precisely what we were doing a few hours before the beginning of the conclave, under the gaze of Our Lady beside the altar, in the Basilica that rises above the tomb of St. Peter.
We felt united with the entire people of God in their sense of faith, love for the pope and confident expectation.
We were there to invoke the help of the Holy Spirit, to implore His light and strength so that the pope elected may be the one whom the Church and humanity need at this difficult and complex turning point in history.
Fr. Camou:
My deep hope is he brings peace through unity. I pray he will be willing to work hard to achieve this. By his words and what I’ve heard about him so far, it seems he not only desires this peace through unity but may exhibit a true gift for it.
I pray Pope Leo XIV witnesses a sincere and deep love for God and the Church such that people in and outside the Church are compelled in heart to draw nearer.
