Carissimo confratello: chronicle of Election Day

The night of the conclave, the gardens of the Curia of the Order of Saint Augustine were teeming with fireflies. Small and warm luminous flashes darted back and forth among the roses, orange trees, and the small pine grove that forms the natural terrace of the General House. For a moment, it seemed as if a technician from the numerous media outlets, who in those days occupied every inch of space with a view of St. Peter’s dome had misplaced a faulty and winding LED lamp in the midst of the darkness.

This event, it must be said, takes on meaning for those who see their lives woven through by small coincidences, believing them find a home in the truly extraordinary.

Many hours later, in the midst of the commotion of the crowd that poured into the square after the white smoke, the cardinal protodeacon’s rhythmic declaration made our spines tingle. First, he announced "Robertum Franciscum," then "Prevost," and finally "Leone XIV."

Then followed leaps in the air, embraces, tears, cries of emotion, and video calls across the world to say something profoundly human: I am with my brothers where something extraordinary happens. He is the first Augustinian Pope in the almost 800 years of the Order’s pilgrimage on earth.

Sacred incredulity for the Thomases who, for the first time, placed their fingers into the wound of this mysteriously transformative reality, which always expands without heed to calculations and superstitions. Father Robert, Cardinal Prevost, that classmate, the player on the other side of the court, "my pastor in Chiclayo"… The one who was Prior General of the Order for 12 years is now the new Pope of the universal Church. 

“Blessed be God!” repeated Father Andrés Gómez, general archivist, from the fourth floor of the Curia. With his hands on his head, pacing back and forth, Bishop Luis Marín patted backs and let his own be embraced.

In the heart of the square, in front of the basilica’s balcony, stood Father Alejandro, Father Javier, Father Daleng, Fathers Wilson, Farrell, and Lam—all in identical states of joyous disbelief.

At the doorway, amid flashes and jubilation, the Postulator General and the Econome General exchanged glances and laughed like two children who had received gifts far better than expected.

The warmly embraced genuineness of this immense joy, born of a singular event, suddenly sparked a spontaneous wave of wonder, fraternity, and amazement—much like seeing a loved one appear on the balcony of one’s home, on a special day, bringing excellent news.

What a great privilege it is to live and understand that the extraordinary fills every corner of our existence and echoes from the humblest to the grandest in an eternal hymn of praise!

How beautiful it is to witness, document, and take part in that “See how they love one another” within the Order!

Carissimo confratello Papa Leone XIV, prega per noi come noi preghiamo per te.