ROME — The new Chicago-raised Pope Leo XIV faces an immediate challenge in his native country: taming the brawling U.S. tribe of Catholics, riven by political divisions that have thwarted the will of his predecessors.

When still a cardinal, the new pope led discussions on key issues facing the church during which “every voice had equal value,” whether an archbishop or an unordained believer.

Pope Leo I tangled with Attila the Hun and won. Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as the first Holy Roman Emperor. This is the history of a legendary papal namesake.