As the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Leo the Great on November 10, this ancient commemoration carries a new resonance under the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, the fourteenth successor of St. Peter to take the name “Leo.” While the new pope says he chose the name mainly out of admiration for the teachings of Pope Leo XIII, this feast recalls the very first Pope Leo, whose legacy helped shape the office of the papacy itself.

A lion of the early Church

Pope Leo I, the first pope to be given the title “the Great,” reigned from A.D. 440 to 461. As barbarian invasions persisted and the Western Empire weakened, the Bishop of Rome found himself taking on greater responsibility for civic and political leadership, a pattern that would become even more pronounced during the time of Pope Gregory the Great. 

He articulated the Church’s teaching on Christ’s dual nature, fully human and fully divine, at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, defining a cornerstone of Catholic belief. He strengthened the primacy of the Bishop of Rome, guided the Church through political chaos, and preached unity and mercy to a frightened people.

Fully aware of the times in which he lived, when Rome was shifting from pagan to Christian and facing deep social turmoil, Pope Leo the Great made himself close to the people through his pastoral care and preaching. He strengthened the practice of charity in a city burdened by famine, refugees, injustice, and poverty.

Perhaps the most famous story about him is his meeting with Attila the Hun in 452, when the pope personally rode out to negotiate peace and persuaded the invader to turn back. Centuries later, his courage and clarity of teaching earned him the rare title Doctor of the Church.

For Catholics around the world, November 10 celebrates a man who embodied the strength and compassion of the “Lion of Judah” whose name he bore.

A new Leo for a new age

Fast forward more than 1,500 years: In 2025, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became the 267th pope and took the name Leo XIV, the first pope to do so in more than a century. His choice immediately drew comparisons to Pope Leo XIII, who led the Church from 1878 to 1903 and ushered Catholic teaching into the modern era through his groundbreaking encyclical “Rerum Novarum,” published in 1891, on the rights and dignity of workers. He also gave the Church the famous Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel and promoted the rosary and Marian devotion.

Pope Leo XIV explained shortly after his election that he chose the name primarily to honor Pope Leo XIII, whose landmark encyclical “Rerum Novarum” addressed the social questions of his time. As reported by Vatican News, the pope said his choice was made “because Pope Leo XIII in his historic encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’ addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor.”

Yet the name also links him, intentionally or not, to the very first Leo, the saint remembered on November 10. Both popes stepped into moments of historical upheaval. Both faced a world in transition. And both recognized that clear teaching and pastoral compassion must go hand in hand.

Continuity and contrast

When Leo I preached in fifth-century Rome, he reminded Christians that their faith should be visible in every action. “Recognize, O Christian, your dignity,” he said in one of his most famous homilies. It is a line that could easily appear in the addresses of Pope Leo XIV today.

Like his predecessor, the current pope has emphasized the inherent dignity of the human person. But where the first Leo confronted barbarian invasions, today’s challenges are social and technological. Pope Leo XIV has spoken of a new frontier in human work and identity, urging ethical reflection on artificial intelligence, digital media, and economic systems that leave people behind.

In that sense, Leo XIV carries forward the spirit of Leo XIII, yet the roots of his mission reach deeper – to the first Leo, who believed that truth must always be lived in love and translated into service.

The strength of the name “Leo”

The name Leo itself, meaning “lion,” has been chosen by thirteen popes before Leo XIV, many of whom guided the Church through difficult eras. The tradition conveys strength, courage, and watchfulness – virtues that seem particularly needed in a century marked by polarization, war, and rapid technological change.

History shows us that each Pope Leo has faced a defining moment in which faith was tested against the tide of history. For Leo I, it was the defense of doctrine and civilization; for Leo XIII, the social question of modern labor; for Leo XIV, it may well be how humanity preserves its soul and each human person their dignity in a digital world.

A feast that speaks across centuries

The Feast of St. Leo the Great is more than a historical footnote. It is a reminder that the papacy is both ever ancient and ever new, grounded in continuity but called to address the needs of each age.

As Catholics mark this feast, they can look back at each Pope Leo that has led the Church. The lion-hearted pope of the fifth century once guided a frightened Church through crisis. The lion-hearted pope of the twenty-first now seeks to do the same, as he said in his first Urbi et Orbi address, “God loves us, God loves you all, and evil will not prevail!”