Pope Leo XIV celebrated his 70th birthday Sunday by thanking his parents — and mused about how growing up in a Chicago household of Cubs and White Sox fans prepared him for navigating global diplomacy.

Crowds cheered when Leo appeared for his Sunday prayer over St. Peter’s Square, with many carrying balloons and huge signs reading, “Happy birthday” in numerous languages, NBC News reported.

“My dears, it seems you know today I have turned 70,” a smiling Leo told the cheering square. 3

“I thank the Lord, my parents and all those who remembered me in their prayers,” said the pope, whose mom and dad died in the 1990s.

Leo — who was chosen to lead the Catholic Church in May at age 69 — is the youngest person to serve as pope since 1978, when John Paul II was selected at age 58.

That

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