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10 Ways The "By The Pope!" Meme Exploded In 2025: From Crusader Exclamation To Chicago's Holy Lols

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The phrase "By the Pope!" has undergone a historic and hilarious transformation in the world of internet culture, culminating in a massive, topical resurgence in 2025. What began as a niche, medieval-themed exclamation of shock has pivoted dramatically to become the catchphrase for a global meme phenomenon surrounding the election of the first American-born pontiff. As of December 2025, the digital landscape is still flooded with content celebrating, analyzing, and satirizing the monumental events that unfolded at the Vatican, solidifying "By the Pope!" as one of the most significant meme cycles of the year.

The catalyst for this explosion was the 2025 Papal Conclave, which followed the death of Pope Francis in April. The election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who took the name Pope Leo XIV, was a historic moment that immediately captured the internet's imagination, especially due to his roots in Chicago. This unique blend of solemn religious tradition and viral American pop culture created a perfect storm for meme generation, breathing new life into every "Pope-related" joke, including the classic "By the Pope!" format. This article dives deep into the history, the key players, and the 10 most viral trends that defined the 2025 meme economy.

Pope Leo XIV: The First American Pontiff and Meme Icon

The core entity driving the 2025 "By the Pope" resurgence is the newly elected Pope Leo XIV. His biography is central to the humor and topicality of the current meme wave, as his Chicago origins provide an endless source of cultural contrast and comedy.

  • Birth Name: Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, O.S.A.
  • Born: September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois
  • Age at Election: 69 years old
  • Pre-Papacy Role: Prefect of the influential Dicastery for Bishops under Pope Francis
  • Election Date: May 8, 2025
  • Papal Name: Leo XIV (The 267th Pope of the Catholic Church)
  • Historical Significance: First American-born pope in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church

Prevost’s election was seen as a continuation of Pope Francis’s path, given his role as a close ally and his previous position within the Vatican bureaucracy. However, for the internet, his theological alignment was secondary to the sheer comedic potential of a Chicagoan leading the Catholic Church.

The Holy History: From Crusader Exclamation to Global Phenomenon

Before 2025, the "By the Pope!" meme was primarily a piece of niche internet history, residing largely within history and Catholic-themed meme communities. Its original context is a classic three-panel exploitable image.

The Medieval Origins of "By The Pope!"

The original meme, which gained traction years before the 2025 conclave, features a stock image of a crusader or a medieval knight.

  • Format: A three-panel comic strip.
  • Panel 1: Shows the crusader with a caption like "Greetings Peasants, how goes th-." The dash indicates an interruption.
  • Panel 2: A shocking or anachronistic image is shown.
  • Panel 3: The crusader is shown again, often with an expression of shock or disbelief, exclaiming the phrase: "By The Pope!" or "Deus Vult!" (God Wills It).

This format established "By the Pope!" as a dramatic, quasi-historical way to express surprise, outrage, or disbelief at a modern situation, drawing a humorous contrast between medieval sensibilities and contemporary internet culture.

The 2025 Papal Conclave and the Resurgence

The death of Pope Francis and the subsequent Papal Conclave in 2025 provided the perfect real-world event to resurrect and redefine the phrase. The intense global media coverage, the drama of the white smoke, and the eventual reveal of an American Pope created a meme-generating goldmine.

The internet's reaction was immediate. The formality and tradition of the Vatican were juxtaposed against the casual, chaotic nature of social media platforms like Twitter and TikTok. The phrase "By the Pope!" shifted from a niche historical reference to a timely, ironic exclamation used to comment on the entire spectacle of the election of Pope Leo XIV.

10 Viral Trends That Defined the "Pope Leo XIV" Meme Economy

The true genius of the 2025 meme cycle lies in its hyper-specific focus on Pope Leo XIV’s Chicago background. The following list details the most viral and topically authoritative memes that exploded across the internet.

  1. The "Holy Lols" Chicagoan Stereotype: Jokes immediately focused on the new Pope's Chicago roots, imagining him with a thick Chicago accent, ordering deep-dish pizza, or wearing a Chicago Bears jersey under his vestments.
  2. "Love Sosa" Vatican Walkouts: One of the most viral jokes was the idea of Pope Leo XIV walking out onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica not to traditional hymns, but to the Chicago drill music anthem "Love Sosa" by Chief Keef. This trend perfectly captured the cultural clash.
  3. The "God's Country" / "6-7" Memes: The election was frequently referred to as a win for "God's country" or linked to the number "6-7" (a reference to the best memes of 2025), cementing the event as a major cultural moment.
  4. The "Woke Pope" Controversy: A viral, unsourced meme circulated claiming the new Pope said, "God doesn't need soldiers, be woke." This was quickly debunked but generated a massive wave of counter-memes and commentary on the intersection of faith and progressive culture.
  5. The Papal Conclave Thriller Parodies: Memes frequently referenced the 2024 thriller film *Conclave*, using its imagery and dialogue to satirize the secretive, high-stakes nature of the election process.
  6. The 'White Smoke' Anxiety Memes: The period of waiting for the white smoke (fumata bianca) from the Sistine Chapel chimney generated countless reaction memes about anxiety, anticipation, and the slow pace of the Vatican bureaucracy.
  7. The "First American Pope" Export: Jokes centered on the idea of America's "export" to the Vatican, often comparing the new Pope to other American cultural exports, both good and bad.
  8. The Photoshop Resurrections: Older Pope Francis memes, such as the famous photo of him holding a signed Lamborghini, were resurrected and photoshopped with Pope Leo XIV holding new, Chicago-themed objects, like a hot dog or a baseball bat.
  9. The Dicastery for Bishops Deep Dive: Niche memes emerged focusing on Pope Leo XIV’s previous role as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, turning this obscure Vatican office into a temporary internet entity, showcasing the depth of the meme research.
  10. The "By The Pope!" Exclamation Rebrand: The original crusader image was often replaced with a shocked image of Pope Leo XIV himself, effectively merging the old meme format with the new, topical subject matter. The phrase "By the Pope!" was fully re-contextualized to mean "I can't believe the Pope is from Chicago!"

The Topical Authority of Pope Memes and Cultural Impact

The sheer volume and speed of the 2025 papal memes demonstrated the internet's ability to instantly process and satirize historic events. The election of Pope Leo XIV became a cultural touchstone, transforming a solemn religious ritual into a viral, global conversation.

The memes served as a form of collective celebration for Chicagoans and Americans, who now claim a piece of the Vatican's history. By incorporating cultural entities like the Chicago Bulls, deep-dish pizza, and drill music, the internet made the 267th head of the Catholic Church feel instantly relatable and accessible to a digital-native generation. This meme cycle proves that no event, no matter how sacred or traditional, is immune from the internet's relentless drive for comedy and cultural commentary. The phrase "By the Pope!" has never been more relevant—or more hilarious—than it is today.

by the pope meme
by the pope meme

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