Pope Leo XIV told his bank he was the pope to avoid flying 5,000 miles from Rome to Chicago. He didn’t get the reaction he was expecting

Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Prevost on the South Side of Chicago, recently found out that being the leader of the Catholic Church does not get you special treatment at your local bank. A few months after being elected pope, he tried to call his Chicago bank to update his phone number and address. What followed was a frustrating experience that most people would find very familiar.

The story came out through Father Tom McCarthy, a fellow Augustinian and longtime friend of the pope. McCarthy shared the story during a gathering at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Naperville, Illinois, last week. According to Brobible, after the pope answered the standard security questions, he was told he would need to visit the branch in person to make the changes.

That was a serious problem, since the pope would have had to travel nearly 5,000 miles from Rome to Chicago just to update his contact details. Facing that impossible demand, he decided to reveal who he was. He asked the bank representative, “Would it matter to you if I told you I’m Pope Leo?” The woman on the phone was not impressed, she simply hung up.

Even the pope cannot escape the frustrating reality of customer service bureaucracy

The situation was eventually sorted out after the pope got in touch with someone who could connect him to the bank’s president. The bank president confirmed that in-person visits are normally required for such changes, but he made an exception in this case. It was clear that turning down the pope’s request was not a risk the bank wanted to take, and the account was kept without any further trouble.  The pope marks his first full year in the role on May 8, 2026.

His time so far has not been without controversy, especially on the political front. He has been in a public back-and-forth with the US president over his stance on the war in Iran. According to The Guardian, the US president has accused the pope of putting Catholics in danger by questioning the use of nuclear weapons, and Trump’s claims about the pope’s position on Iran going nuclear sparked a series of sharp public exchanges between the two.

Pope Leo XIV was elected following the death of Pope Francis, who led the Church for 12 years. It was the first time cardinals had gathered to choose a new pope since 2013. Italy’s Pietro Parolin was widely seen as the front-runner, but the world was surprised when white smoke confirmed that the Chicago native had been selected as the new leader of the Catholic Church.

Since taking on the role, the pope has had a team helping him manage the transition to Vatican City. The move from Chicago to Rome is not a small one, and settling into a new life at the Vatican while managing the responsibilities of leading over a billion Catholics is no easy task. However, as the banking story shows, he has clearly held onto some everyday tasks himself, which says a lot about how he has approached his new life.

It is a reminder that even someone in one of the most powerful positions in the world still has to deal with the same annoying bureaucratic processes as everyone else. Whether it is being put on hold, asked to come in person, or simply getting hung up on, no job title protects you from the frustrations of modern customer service. The pope’s experience is funny, but it is also something that a lot of people can immediately relate to.

The story also highlights how the ordinary parts of life do not stop just because your job title has changed. Whether he is managing international tensions or trying to update his phone number with a bank, it is clear that the pope’s first year has been anything but simple or quiet. You can read the full details of how the pope’s bank dispute was resolved and what happened after the call ended.