“When we were in Rome this time (in October), he gave me the key to (my) house. That hit me big time, because it's over. He just said, "Here's a gift certificate I can't use, and here's this" (the key). He said nothing more. It's over, he's not ours”
Editor's note: This is the second segment of NCR's interview with John Prevost, the brother of Pope Leo XIV, conducted at his parish in New Lenox, Illinois, as part of the series "Looking for Leo in History." In this installment, John reflects on the years after his brother left home, from his brother Robert's time in the minor seminary and missionary life in Peru to his transition into the papacy. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. NCR: What was your first impression of going up and seeing the minor seminary where he lived? Prevost: When we said goodbye, I think there were tears all the way home from Holland, Michigan, to Chicago. I think that hit because you don't get the reality of it until it actually happens. When we were in Rome this time (in October), he gave me the key to (my) house. That hit me big time, because it's over. He always had a key to where I lived in case he was in town and I wasn't home. But now that he's pope, he gave me that key back, and that hit. …