Robert Francis Prevost has become the 267th person to become Pope. He will be known as Pope Leo XIV.

Even before his name was announced, the crowd gathered in front of the St Peter’s Basilica chanted “Viva il Papa” or long live the Pope.

Leo, who was born in Chicago, is the first American to hold the position of the head of the Catholic church. Despite his place of birth, the Vatican described him as the second pope from the Americas (Francis was from Argentina).

His election brought renewed hope, especially because he is believed to share late Pope Francis’ values and views on a number of issues, including the poor, migration, and the environment, among the rest.

As Catholics celebrate Pope Leo XIV, a prophecy is casting a shadow on the future of the church.

A prophecy, known as the Prophecy of the Popes, claims there would be 112 popes after Malachy’s time — Saint Malachy was an Irish mystic who lived in the 12th century — with the last one being referred to as “Peter the Roman.”

According to some, Francis, who died on April 21 at the age of 88, could mark the 112th pope on that list, USA Today writes.

Josh Canning, director of Toronto’s Chaplaincy at the Newman Centre, dismissed the idea in 2013. He said, “I don’t know how you can connect Peter the Roman with Pope Francis.”

Fr. James Weiss, an Episcopal priest and professor at Boston College, dubbed the prophecy a forgery. “The prophecies are a forgery. I don’t believe there’s any credibility to them.”

Further, Weiss argues that the popes in the prophesy aren’t specifically names. On the contrary, they are referred to as to  “swift bear” and “rose of Umbria.”

Medieval history professor Joëlle Rollo-Koster says there is not even evidence that Malachy wrote any prophecy whatsoever. ”As a historian, I am hardcore on the evidence, and that, for me, is the ultimate proof that Malachy did not utter prophecies or write prophecies,” she said.

The prophecy, no matter if one believes in it or not, doesn’t show any connection to Pope Leo XIV.

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