NEED TO KNOW
Pope Leo XIV has some very famous distant relatives, including both Madonna and Justin Bieber
The New York Times found that the pope is related to Louis Boucher de Grandpre, who is a distant cousin of Madonna and Bieber
The Pope is also related to Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton and Justin Trudeau through de Grandpre, who was born in the Quebec city of Trois-Rivières
Pope Leo XIV may be a celebrity in his own right, but the famous religious leader has plenty of starry relatives.
The New York Times traced the new pope’s lineage, finding that he had relatives in Italy, Spain and France, some of whom later relocated to Quebec in the 1650s.
After tracing his roots back to Louis Boucher de Grandpre, one of his distant Canadian relatives, the Times found that Pope Leo, 69, is related to both Justin Bieber and Madonna through de Grandpre, who was born in the Quebec city of Trois-Rivières.
Other celebrities related to the pope through de Grandpre include Angelina Jolie and Hillary Clinton, as well as former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the late writer Jack Kerouac.
Madonna’s link to the pope comes three years after she asked his predecessor, the late Pope Francis, to meet and discuss her alleged three excommunications from the church.
“Hello @Pontifex Francis —I’m a good Catholic. I Swear!” she wrote on X in May 2022. “I mean I don’t Swear! Its been a few decades since my last confession. Would it be possible to meet up one day to discuss some important matters ?”
She added, “I’ve been ex communicated [sic] 3 times. It doesn’t seem fair. Sincerely Madonna.”
ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty
Pope Leo
Pope Leo XIV made history when he became the first-ever American-born pontiff. The pope, who was born in Chicago, has Creole roots from his ancestors in New Orleans.
Many enslaved Africans once lived in the city, according to the Times, which reports that the pope’s ancestors include at least 17 people “who were identified in various records as ‘mulatto,’ ‘mulatress,’ ‘mulâtress créole,’ ‘free person of color’ and ‘quadroon.’ “
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The pope, whose birth name is Robert Prevost, was born to Louis Marius Prevost and Mildred Martínez on Sept. 14, 1955, in Chicago. His immediate family includes older brothers John and Louis, who even predicted their younger sibling’s future job.
“Some people play school, some people play army, he played priest, and we had to go to Mass,” John told ABC News after his brother was named the new pope. “He knew right then and there that this is not a joke. … The women down the street said he would be the first American pope.”
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