Pope Leo’s family tree is as shocking as it is interesting, and people are going wild for one celebrity he’s tied to.

Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost officially became the newest Pope on May 8, and chose to go by the name Pope Leo XIV as is tradition.

As the 267th to take on the role, Pope Leo has already been making waves since taking over from his predecessor Pope Francis, who passed away at the age of 88 in April.

In his first Sunday noon (May 11) blessing he declared to the masses below him: “Never again war.”

He called for peace in Ukraine, and a ceasefire in Gaza, as well as an agreement between India and Pakistan.

He’s also been outspoken about US President Donald Trump and has been known to be against many of his policies.

In the past, he has retweeted posts that were adamantly against Trump’s beliefs.

Pope Leo’s family tree is interesting (ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

For example, in 2018, Pope Leo retweeted a thread from Cardinal Blase Cupich, which criticized the Trump administration’s policies.

“There is nothing remotely Christian, American, or morally defensible about a policy that takes children away from their parents and warehouses them in cages. This is being carried out in our name and the shame is on us all,” the first post of the thread read.

So, when this new detail about Pope Leo was revealed, people were left wondering, what else is going to come out next?

Henry Louis Gates Jr has hosted PBS’s Finding Your Roots for the last 13 years, and after being hounded by fans to find out more about Pope Leo’s ancestry, he complied.

In collaboration with the genealogists at American Ancestors and the Cuban Genealogy Club of Miami, they went as far back as his 12th-great-grandparents, who were born in the early 1500s.

That’s when they made the discovery that Pope Francis is related to none other than a Queen.

The Queen of Pop, that is.

Yes, Pope Leo and Madonna are family, and that is a wild thought.

Pope Leo and Madonna are distantly related (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)

Through a distant maternal ancestor, who was born in the 1590s, Pope Leo is ninth cousins, various times removed, with the singer, and other celebrities.

The internet found out this slice of trivia, and they’ve not been able to figure out how to take the news.

One person on X wrote: “Wait, Pope Leo XIV is actually a distant relative of Madonna?! That’s such a wild and iconic connection , like, royalty meets pop royalty? I’m obsessed with this tea.”

Someone else said: “Papa don’t preach but her distant relative does.”

Another wrote: “this is just so random, like two completely different vibes.”

A fourth asked: “how distant though? distant like they can’t kiss because its weird distant? or like 10th cousin distant?”

But this is just the tip of the iceberg: Pope Leo is also related to Pierre and Justin Trudeau, Hillary Clinton, Angelina Jolie, Justin Bieber, and the famous writer, Jack Kerouac.

His lineage also includes noblemen, freedom fights, enslaved people, slaveowners who were both black and white, and more.

It’s safe to say that the more we learn about the new Pope, the more interesting he becomes.

Pope Leo has been getting a lot of praise after showcasing his American roots with a slightly odd choice of clothing.

Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost, was selected to be the leader of the Catholic church in early May and marked the first time an American was selected for the role.

Born in Chicago, the pope has received much praise and attention from people around the world, including those not of the Catholic faith due to hailing from the US.

His selection has also resulted in many Americans taking interest in the traditions and ceremonies of the Vatican and church, like choosing a new name when becoming the next pontiff.

As well as this, the Pope recently seemed to delight many with an interaction with a person who wanted him to have a rather peculiar gift.

Pope Leo made a one-handed catch of a cloth doll of himself thrown by a White Sox baseball fan while he was on the move in the popemobile.

The Catholic leader has been praised again for showing his support for the baseball team with his choice of attire.

People online absolutely loved the outfit (Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP) (Photo by FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP via Getty Images)

If you were hoping to see the pope in a baseball jersey you’re out of luck, but he was spotted donning a black and white Chicago White Sox baseball cap while wearing traditional clothing.

He wore this while on June 11 as he met newly wedded couples in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.

Many on social media loved the outfit, while others joked about the team’s rather abysmal record.

One Twitter user said: “Not catholic but @Pontifex has been dropping banger after banger here would tailgate w/ him in a heartbeat.”

Another joked: “Sadly, he could start for the White Sox right now. They need all the help they can get… 2nd worst record in baseball.”

A third commented: “The White Sox suck but this goes hard.”

White Sox fans back in the US have been loving Pope Leo’s appointment (Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Someone else added: “You know he’s legit because he’s got that s*** on after the worst season in baseball history.”

And one fan simply wrote: “Seeing a POPE with this affiliation with American sports is wild.”

Interestingly enough, when Prevost was announced as the Pope, some Chicago Cubs fans attempted to claim him however his brother, John Prevost, set the record straight on this.

Speaking to local news outlets, he said: “He was never, ever a Cubs fan, so I don’t know where that came from.

“He was always a Sox fan. Our mother was a Cubs fan. I don’t know, maybe that clued in there, and our dad was a Cardinals fan, so I don’t know where that all came from. And all the aunts in our mom’s family were from North Side, so that’s why they were Cubs fans.”

Pope Leo has addressed the US for first time with a bold message on the same day Donald Trump held a $45 million military parade.

On Saturday (June 14), President Donald Trump celebrated his 79th birthday party with a huge historic military parade through Washington, DC.

The power of the military went on full display in the parade, with tanks and aircrafts spanning the decades as well as parachuters from the sky and more than 6,000 uniformed soldiers in period consumes patrolling through the capital in the first of its kind since the end of the Gulf War in 1991.

Now, Pope Leo XIV addressed the nation in a rather unusual address – from the Chicago White Sox stadium – with a message that appears to snub the $45 million event.

The POTUS celebrated the military on his 79th birthday with a huge parade (Doug Mills – Pool/Getty Images)

Supporters of the head of the Roman Catholic Church gathered at the Rate Field baseball stadium the pope once attended as a South Side native and White Sox fan to hear his first message to North America.

The pre-recorded message from the Vatican was intended to celebrate his roots in Chicago and to offer words of comfort to young people.

Pope Leo acknowledged the adversity youngsters have faced during and since the Covid-19 pandemic, saying it inspired ‘moments of anxiety, of loneliness’ and ‘depression and sadness’.

He encouraged those from the field to attend local parishes where they can ‘discover the love of god is truly healing’.

The pope delivered a message to his home stadium from the Vatican (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

“You are the promise of hope for so many of us. The world looks to you … we need you,” he said.

Then, in what some might interpret as a dig at the president’s military parade, he added: “We have to look beyond our egotistical ways to promote hope.

“That light … on the horizon is not easy to see and yet as we grow in our unity, we can discover that light growing brighter and brighter and we can become that message of hope to promote peace and unity throughout the world,” Leo added.

He concluded by encouraging people to ‘do something in our own lives to serve one another’.

“In that service to others … we may find the true meaning in our life,” he said.

Dozens packed into the stadium to hear Pope Leo’s first address to Chicago (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The message of hope comes in direct contrast to the POTUS‘ eight-minute-long speech where he boasted of the US army’s military prowess to the alleged 250,000-strong crowd.

Trump said in part: “Every other country celebrates their victories. It’s about time America did too.

“We’re the hottest country in the world right now,” he continued. “If you threaten the American people, our soldiers are coming for you.”

The event was also hit by protesters who deliberately organized a clash with the celebration.

The ‘No Kings’ demonstrators said they did so to ‘draw a clear contrast between our people-powered movement and the costly, wasteful, and un-American birthday parade in Washington’.

The newly elected Pope Leo could take home a pretty penny for his role as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Yesterday (Thursday, May 8), the Vatican unveiled Pope Francis’ successor, Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, to the cheers and applause of millions watching around the world.

Taking on the papal name Pope Leo XIV, the new Catholic leader is relatively young for a pontiff at the age of 69 and, in the spirit of breaking records, is the only American to take on the role in a long line of 266 prior popes.

According to his big brother, John Prevost, we can expect to see Pope Leo following in the ‘humble’ Pope Francis’ footsteps as the pair shared a passion in helping the disadvantaged.

The late 88-year-old pontiff was known for his frugality and progressive attitude, speaking out about climate change, war, and anti-LGBTQ+ laws, and pushing for reform in the Church.

The new pope’s salary has been revealed (ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

As a Jesuit, Francis swore an oath of poverty, chastity, and obedience to Christ, and lived up to his namesake of St Francis of Assisi who lived a life of simplicity.

In other words, Francis passed up on a life of luxury to focus entirely on his religious duties.

He opted out of his $32,000 annual papal salary, which would have seen him rake in millions throughout his tenure, and chose to live in a rather bare and austere bedroom in Domus Sanctae Marthae, a church guest house, instead of the grand Apostolic Palace where his predecessors lived.

However, Pope Francis was far from destitute, with his assets, fleets of vehicles, residences, and charitable allowances reaching millions over his tenure.

Now, Pope Leo, an Augustinian friar who spent most of his life as a missionary in Peru, is yet to decide how he will live, though many like his brother suspect the centrist will align closely with Francis.

International development charity Cafod said Pope Leo presents ‘a voice of wisdom in a fractured and divided world,’ particularly noting his work in Peru to bring the ‘vital perspective of the global south’ into his papacy, ‘elevating voices from the margins to centre stage’.

The Vatican pretty much pays for everything anyway (Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images)

It therefore wasn’t a shock when Pope Leo spoke from the balcony over St Peter’s Square with the simple message: “Peace be with you,” though he did opt to wear the traditional red cape of the papacy, which Pope Francis declined during his first address in 2013.

Pope Leo is entitled to some money, though isn’t exactly a traditional salary as we know it.

He will be able to take in €2,500 (roughly $2,820) per month – a bit of a pay cut considering he’s reportedly used to taking home between €4,000 and €5,000 (around $5,600) per month as a cardinal.

However, he probably doesn’t need it either considering the Vatican foots the bill for quite literally everything he may need, like housing, food, transport, and healthcare.

Like Francis, he will also receive a hefty allowance to make charitable donations.

The Vatican, aka the ‘world’s smallest country,’ reportedly funds its economy through donations, investments and other revenues, with the United States standing as the largest donor through its Peter’s Pence.