When you hear that Madonna and the Pope are related, your first instinct might be to check the source and make sure it’s not a tweet from @drunkhistory. But no, this is real. Verified. And it comes with family trees.
A new genealogical investigation into Pope Leo XIV—born Robert Prevost—revealed that His Holiness is distantly related to none other than Madonna, Justin Bieber, Angelina Jolie, and even Hillary Clinton. It’s a lineage twist that feels more Netflix docuseries than Vatican archive. But here we are.
Pope Leo and Madonna: A Holy Bloodline You Didn’t See Coming
The discovery comes courtesy of historian Henry Louis Gates Jr., host of Finding Your Roots, whose team traced Pope Leo’s ancestry back to Louis Boucher de Grandpré, a 17th-century French-Canadian settler. That same man happens to be a shared ancestor of multiple North American celebrities and power figures. Translation: the pope is genealogically connected to some of the most controversial and beloved icons of our time.
Including, yes, Madonna—whose decades-long beef with the Catholic Church is the stuff of pop culture legend.
From the Like a Prayer video featuring burning crosses to stage performances that scandalized the Vatican, Madonna has long been cast as the antithesis of papal approval. And now? She’s technically family. God really does work in mysterious ways.
See also: Pope Leo XIV Surprises with Conservative Views on Marriage and Abortion in First Address
Meet the Pope’s Extended Fam: Biebs, Hillary, and Angelina?
Justin Bieber also shows up in the papal family tree—though his relationship with religion has been a little less contentious. The pop star has spoken publicly about his faith and been active in Christian communities like Churchome. Turns out, his prayers may have been answered in the form of a distant cousin who happens to be the literal pope.
Angelina Jolie also makes an appearance. As does Hillary Clinton. Even Jack Kerouac, the beat poet who gave middle fingers to conformity, is somewhere in this gloriously chaotic bloodline.
It’s the kind of bizarre overlap that reminds us: history is messy. Family is messier. And somewhere, somehow, a dinner table exists where politics, religion, Hollywood, and rebellion sit elbow to elbow.
See also: He Appears at Every Conclave: The Story of the Man Who Walked 37 Hours to Meet the Pope
A Holy Scandal in the Bloodline
The surprises don’t stop there. Gates’s team also uncovered that “Prevost,” Pope Leo’s last name, didn’t come from his paternal grandfather—but from a secret affair. His great-grandfather had a child with a French woman named Suzanne Louise Marie Fontaine, and that child carried her surname. So yes, even the pope has a scandal in the family closet.
We repeat: a pope with a secret love affair in his lineage, distant ties to Madonna, and a family tree that includes both Saints and Like a Virgin? You can’t make this up.
Divine Comedy (With a Very Modern Twist)
No, Madonna hasn’t commented. Yet. But in a timeline where influencers call themselves “mother” and literal mothers of Christ are debated on Twitter, it feels only right that one of pop’s most provocative queens and the current pontiff are part of the same tangled DNA thread.
Whether this family tree leads to a spiritual duet or just a perfectly awkward Vatican Christmas card remains to be seen. But one thing’s certain: this is the most deliciously unexpected plot twist of the year.
This article was originally written in Spanish by Nayely Aguilera in Cultura Colectiva.
