Many sites associated with past popes have become museums or holy destinations for the faithful. But Pope Leo XIV’s childhood church closed years ago.

In his first days as pope, Leo XIV has struck many as an unassuming man of quiet warmth and deeply rooted identity. A visit to the part of Chicago where the first American Pontiff was raised gives an idea of how he got that way.

He is a man formed by his experience in the church of Chicago, especially the south side,’ writes Mark Francis, CSV.