Before Cardinal Robert Prevost became the first American pope, many believed the prospect of a U.S. pontiff was highly unlikely.

“For betting types, the conventional wisdom says not to put your money on a pope from the United States,” a New York Times profile of Prevost began, while an Associated Press piece described his American background as “one strike against him.”

Speaking with NY1 after cardinals elected Prevost Thursday, Bishop Robert Brennan — who leads the Diocese of Brooklyn — said he himself was “one of those people.”

“It’s a surprise, but a very happy surprise,” Brennan told Shannan Ferry.

Prevost, who was born in Chicago, graduated from Villanova University in Pennsylvania, later becoming a missionary in Peru for years.

His missionary work, Brennan said, will likely inform his time in the papacy.

“Popes have spoken about being missionary in nature. He actually was a missionary, and that’s going, I’m sure, to color his service as pope,” he said.

“Having that missionary spirit, that sense of going out and being of service, that sense of having a joy of the Gospel, to use Pope Francis’ words, to say that the Gospel is something important to preach, the missionary spirit — he has that connection with the poor and with those who are suffering,” he added.

Brennan noted that Prevost is an Augustinian priest, or one who is a member of the 13th century order St. Augustine founded.

“And he quoted St. Augustine," he said, referencing Prevost’s first speech as Pope Leo XIV. "'With you, I am a Christian. For you, I am a bishop.' That says something about his view of being in solidarity with everybody. But also, being of humble service. Those are qualities that we see already, just in these opening lines.”

Prevost also “used a lot of the language of Pope Francis,” Brennan said.

“The cardinals, who, they served alongside with Pope Francis, there is a consistency in the preaching, in the message. There are different styles here and there, and we’re going to have to let Pope Leo be his own man. We don’t want him to be a clone of somebody else,” he said. “But I think he’ll bring some of those elements that we knew and loved about Pope Francis, and then I think he’ll bring some of his own creativity and his own sense of tradition to the job, and we’re going to learn from him, the way we learned from Pope Francis.”

Prevost, Brennan added, is relatively young at age 69; Pope Francis was 76 when he was elected, while his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, was 78.

“Especially with a young pope — he’s only 69 years old, he looks young, he seems to have a lot of energy — this is the beginning of a new era, a new age,” Brennan said.

“I think of the days like, back in 1978, the arrival of Pope John Paul II — it was a real turning point,” he added. “And that’s something that’s possible for us today.”