Pope Leo urges rich US Catholics to keep donating
ROME—Pope Leo XIV on Saturday encouraged some of the wealthiest US Catholics to supporting his charitable works, in an audience that confirmed how the election of the first US-born pope has invigorated American Catholics and their donations.
The Chicago-born Leo met with members of The Papal Foundation, which was founded in 1988 for wealthy US Catholics who wish to fund the pope’s projects in the developing world. The group has as its members all the US cardinals.
Thankful
Leo thanked the foundation stewards for their generosity, which he said had allowed “countless people to experience in a concrete fashion the goodness and kindness of God in their own communities.”
To become a steward requires a $1-million gift to a fund that helps support such projects as a school for tribal children in India and technical training for vulnerable women in the Philippines.
Leo’s election seems to have reinvigorated the US church, especially the donor class. On Saturday, the foundation said it had approved a record of more than $15 million in grants this year.
