‘A regular neighborhood guy’: Suburban mayors talk White Sox with Pope Leo XIV during trip to the Vatican

A delegation of Illinois mayors say they experienced a number of “pinch me” moments during their trip to the Vatican this week, marked by a 45-minute private audience with native son Pope Leo XIV.

Yes, they were meeting with the head of the Catholic Church at the start of Holy Week — the holiest of all weeks on the church calendar.

But the visit was also taking place at the start of the baseball season, so the White Sox were a natural topic of conversation with the team’s best known fan.

“I asked him, hopefully he can help out the White Sox,” said Rosemont Mayor Brad Stephens, “and he said, ‘Well, they could use a few more wins,’ and I said, ‘Well, they got the right guy here.’”

Elmwood Park Mayor Angelo “Skip” Saviano brought with him a print from White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf of the pontiff’s appearance — via video message — during a special Mass last June at Rate Field.

Saviano also gifted him an Elmwood Park Police Department chaplain badge, designating him the police force’s honorary chaplain — complete with picture ID.

“He got a big kick out of it. … He’s just a regular neighborhood guy,” Saviano said of the Chicago-born and Dolton-bred former Robert Prevost. “As educated and as worldly as he is, I think he likes the opportunity to come down to his roots.”

“As nervous as we were to meet with him, once we met with him, it was so comforting,” Saviano continued. “Just to talk to him, you felt like you’re talking to your next door neighbor, for crying out loud. It was wonderful.”

Stephens and Saviano, who spoke to the Daily Herald by phone from Rome, were among a group of some 20 mayors on an Illinois Municipal League diplomatic mission and cultural exchange from Saturday to Thursday. Other mayors on the trip included Bloomingdale’s Franco Coladipietro, Bloomington’s Dan Brady, Lemont’s John Egofske, Matteson’s Sheila Chalmers-Currin, Normal’s Chris Koos, North Chicago’s Leon Rockingham Jr., River Forest’s Cathy Adduci and Rockford’s Tom McNamara.

Each mayor was allowed to bring a guest. The youngest on the trip was Stephens’ 13-year-old son, Joseph.

The visit was coordinated by the league, the statewide association representing the 1,294 cities, villages and towns in Illinois. But Saviano said the “driving force” to make the connection with the Vatican was Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki, who penned a letter to Leo asking him to see the local mayors.

“I think that had some real clout involved in that,” Saviano said.

Their visit to the Vatican Monday included a Mass celebrated by the Rev. Zachary Samples, a Springfield priest, near the tomb of St. Peter in the lower level of St. Peter’s Basilica.

The private audience with Leo took place the same day in Clementine Hall, the pope’s primary reception room in the Apostolic Palace. Seated at the front of the hall, he read from prepared remarks and told the elected leaders that “the heart of authentic authority is service,” and called them to be attentive to the needs of the weakest and most vulnerable.

“While there are many tasks that vie for your attention each day, I would encourage you to continue listening to the poor, to immigrants, to the least among you, seeking to accompany them in your work to promote the common good to the benefit of all,” the pope said. “In this way, each of your municipalities may be places for genuine encounter among all citizens, providing opportunities for every individual to flourish.”

Fluent in five languages, the pope delivered his speech in English — with a hint of Chicago-ese.

“The remarks were fabulous,” Stephens said. “I was expecting him to have somewhat of an Italian accent. He’s been here and he was in Peru for a long time. He sounded like a guy from the South Side of Chicago. Very polished, but very Chicago-esque.”

On Tuesday, a small group of mayors had lunch with another Chicagoan — restaurateur Phil Stefani — at Borgo Laudato Si’ in Castel Gandolfo, the historic 135-acre papal summer residence just outside Rome. Stefani, with celebrity chef Art Smith, is opening a restaurant and banquet facility that will be open to the public there in the coming months.

Leo usually spends Tuesdays on the papal grounds, and the mayors were told he was there that day, though they didn’t see him again.

“When I was talking to him, I said, ‘By the way, we don’t want to impede, but we’re going to be eating on your property tomorrow. Stefani invited us,’” Saviano said. “He goes, ‘Good for you guys. Enjoy yourself.’”

The delegation also visited the U.S. embassy on Tuesday, but a meeting with another local from the Chicago suburbs — Villa Park’s Brian Burch, the ambassador to the Holy See — didn’t happen.

Burch, who had been president of the Seton Montessori School board in the DuPage County suburb and head of the conservative Catholic political advocacy group CatholicVote, was in the hospital with back problems, the mayors said.

Stephens, the longtime Northwest suburban mayor who doubles as a Republican state representative in the area, said the pope’s message of service will resonate with him.

“I’m Catholic, but I’m not an every-Sunday-go-to-church guy. Rarely do I go, and probably should be better at that,” he said. “This was just an amazing opportunity and experience to be able to see this and learn so much about the history of Catholicism and the church. … It was an experience of a lifetime.”