Before becoming Leo XIV, he was the son of Mildred, a woman of deep faith who, amid books and cooking, planted in her home the seed of a vocation that guides the Church today.
Newsdesk (13/05/2025 09:30, Gaudium Press) Behind the new Pope, Leo XIV —formerly known as the Augustinian Robert Francis Prevost— lies the discreet presence of a woman whose life was a true domestic altar, Mildred Martínez Prevost, his mother. The granddaughter of Spaniards, a fervent Catholic, with a deep desire to learn and a cook, her story is a testimony to how a vocation can develop, without impositions, amid the aromas of the kitchen, the songs of the parish choir and a love of books.
Gift of hospitality
Born in 1911, Mildred grew up in Dolton, an Illinois suburb near Chicago, where she raised her family in a deeply Catholic environment. Although her ancestry was Hispanic, she also connected to the cultural roots of Louisiana, a state that shaped her culinary identity. Her cooking became renowned; “a constant stream of priests passed through her family home. They were drawn to the irresistible dishes prepared by her mother, Mildred Martinez,” reports The Pillar .
But beyond the kitchen, Mildred shone for her intellectual commitment. At 34—an unusual age for women pursuing higher education at that time—she earned her degree in Library Science from DePaul University in Chicago, governed by the Vincentian Fathers—a society of apostolic life founded by Saint Vincent de Paul for the evangelization of the poor and the formation of the clergy—and two years later she completed a master’s degree in education. This decision revealed her thirst for knowledge, and also her conviction that faith must go hand in hand with culture.
At the service of the altar
Robert Prevost entire life was woven with the threads of ecclesiastical service. “He went to Mass every day. He cleaned the altars, the church, the sacristy. He participated in everything, even fundraising activities,” Marianne Angarola, a classmate of the future Pope, told the Chicago Suntimes.
St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Dolton was her second home. There, she participated in the choir, led community initiatives, organized the parish library, and volunteered tirelessly. It was not uncommon to see her singing, cleaning, advising, or helping organize community events. Her life was a reflection of what her son would later embrace as Pope: a Church that was close, helpful, and outgoing.
A vocation cultivated in the warmth of home
The Prevost family was steeped in spirituality. Two of Mildred’s sisters were nuns, and her husband, Louis Prevost, worked as a catechist and school principal. Religion was not a Sunday ritual, but a daily practice. It was in this environment that their son Robert’s priestly vocation was forged. From childhood, his classmates considered him “chosen to be a priest.”
At 14, without hesitation or hesitation, he chose the minor seminary over the Mendel Institute, where his brothers studied and his mother worked. His choice for religious life was firm, a natural consequence of the environment in which he was raised.
Inspired by the example of his mother, Mildred, he cultivated his intellectual potential, graduated in Mathematics, and taught mathematics and physics before his priestly ordination. His encounter with Saint John Paul II, on a trip to Rome shortly after his ordination, deepened his journey toward missionary service. In 1985, he left for Peru, where he consolidated his pastoral experience.
The presence of a holy mother
Mildred died in 1990, never imagining that her son would eventually ascend to the throne of Peter. But her memory lives on in the hearts of those who know her story. In the parish of Saint Mary of the Assumption, among the photos, the image of the young altar boy who once met a Pope and who today takes his place as Bishop of Rome is still preserved. Her simple life, woven between faith and devotion, lives on in the memory of Leo XIV.
As any good life writer would tell you, God makes no mistake in the tools He chooses to foster a vocation. In the case of the new Pope, that tool was a courageous, faithful, cultured, and helpful mother, the ever-remembered Mildred Martínez Prevost, the priests’ cook who, unwittingly, raised a man who today nourishes the entire Church with his word.
With information from elPeriódico.com and Religion en Libertad from Gaudiumpress Spanish edition
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