Pope Leo, who marked his 71st birthday on September 14, balances the demands of leading the Roman Catholic Church with providing personal support to his family, according to his brother John Prevost. Despite overseeing the spiritual welfare of approximately 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide, the pope continues to assist his brother, a retired school principal residing in Illinois, with everyday tasks such as tax filing and technology troubleshooting.
John Prevost recalled seeking advice from the pontiff during the recent U.S. tax season. Although Pope Leo, born Robert Prevost in Chicago, must file a U.S. tax return as a citizen, the process is simplified by the fact that he does not receive a papal salary. Prevost also reached out to the pope for help with a computer issue after his new Apple device locked him out due to multiple incorrect password attempts. Pope Leo guided him through the problem remotely, demonstrating a hands-on approach despite his Vatican responsibilities.
“I am computer illiterate,” Prevost told the media, “but he told me exactly how to handle the problem.” He emphasized that, beyond his role as pope, Leo remains “my brother first and the Pope second.” Before his election, the pope spent years as a missionary in Peru, where he developed a reputation for practical skills, including fixing cars. Prevost noted that Leo possesses a “wide range of knowledge.” Their family also includes a third brother, Louis, a 75-year-old navy veteran.
The siblings reunited this summer during a ten-day visit to Italy, where Prevost stayed at Leo’s summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, near Rome. The visit featured shared activities such as swimming, reading, watching television, and dining on pizza. Leo also took his brother to visit local monasteries. Before returning to the Vatican, Pope Leo showed Prevost the papal apartment, which he has recently refurbished and equipped with gym equipment.
On his birthday, the pope visited the Vatican’s Apostolic Library, where he acknowledged his late mother’s career as a librarian. He expressed his pleasure at celebrating with the library staff, saying, “Many of you may not know that my mother was a librarian, and yesterday I’m here on my birthday specifically to say hello to all of you.”
In a notable gesture coinciding with his birthday, Pope Leo reversed pay cuts imposed by his predecessor, Pope Francis, on senior Vatican officials. The prior reductions—10 percent salary cuts for cardinals and frozen semiannual wage increases for senior lay staff—were initially enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic when lockdowns reduced income from Vatican museum ticket sales. This move marks a departure from Francis’s more austere management style and his tradition of marking birthdays by engaging with vulnerable populations around the Vatican.
John Prevost described the papacy as a challenging role amid ongoing political and social tensions, citing Leo’s public disagreements with former U.S. President Donald Trump’s foreign policy and his warnings about artificial intelligence. “I’m proud that he hasn’t collapsed yet, that he’s holding on, that he’s getting by,” Prevost said.