The election of Pope Leo XIV, formerly Robert Francis Prevost and the first American to hold the position, on May 8th, signifies a notable change in the Church’s global structure. While unexpected, this event has occurred, and Leo must now determine his leadership approach for the Church and its 1.4 billion members, while also furthering the work of Pope Francis.
Francis was known for his emphasis on inclusivity and globalizing the Catholic Church. During his 12-year term, he made significant strides in diversifying the College of Cardinals, promoting inclusivity within the Catholic Church, and focusing Vatican resources on climate emergencies.
However, many challenges remain, leaving the new Pope with a complex situation to address.
As Leo assumes his role, the world will observe whether he continues Francis’s policies or initiates significant changes in the Catholic community’s priorities, similar to his predecessor.
LGBTQ+ Catholics
Pope Francis’s focus on inclusivity began with navigating considerable pressure from conservative elements within the Catholic Church, particularly in the United States. This pressure stemmed from his advocacy for the poor, migrants, and the environment, as well as his more understanding stance on LGBTQ+ individuals and same-sex marriage within the Church.
While Francis never altered the Church’s official doctrines, his public support for the LGBTQ Catholic community was unprecedented. He endorsed civil unions and engaged with LGBTQ+ groups.
His famous 2013 statement, “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” was groundbreaking.
In 2023, Francis decreed that Roman Catholic priests could bless same-sex couples. Earlier that year, he approved a document allowing transgender individuals to be baptized and serve as godparents.
These landmark decisions came at a cost. Francis faced opposition from conservatives angered by his reforms and a resistant bureaucracy. Leo must now decide whether to continue Francis’s path of LGBTQ inclusion or pursue a different direction.
There are concerns that the new Pope may be less receptive to gay Catholics than Francis. In 2012, Leo reportedly stated that some Western values were sympathetic to issues “at odds with the gospel,” specifically mentioning “homosexual lifestyle.” However, it remains to be seen whether Leo’s leadership at the highest level will differ from these earlier statements, especially in light of Francis’s recent reforms.
Sexual abuse
Francis became Pope during a period of heightened media coverage regarding the systematic cover-up of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, with many cases emerging during the tenure of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. Initially, Francis faced criticism for his perceived inaction on the issue, but he later implemented policy reforms. He even acknowledged his own role in the problem, telling Chilean victims of clerical sexual abuse that he “was part of the problem” and apologizing for dismissing accusations of a cover-up by Catholic bishops.
In 2019, Francis publicly acknowledged the sexual abuse of nuns by priests and bishops and cautioned against psychological and spiritual abuse of sisters.
The Catholic community’s troubled history with sexual abuse and its alleged cover-ups remains a critical issue that Leo must address. Before his papacy, while leading the Diocese of Chiclayo, the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests accused him of concealing sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Church.
Now leading the entire Church, Leo’s priorities in addressing and acting on allegations of sexual abuse against priests and other Catholic leaders will face intense scrutiny.
Women in the church
Francis’s inclusivity extended to promoting greater equality for women in the Church, particularly as nun populations have decreased in recent decades.
In 2023, Francis made a significant change by allowing women to vote at a major bishops’ meeting, which Prevost oversaw. As Pope, Leo will need to address broader questions left unanswered by Francis regarding women’s roles in the Church, including the contentious issue of allowing women to become deacons and potentially paving the way for them to become priests.
Geographic diversity of the Catholic community
Since Francis became Pope in 2013, the Catholic Church and the College of Cardinals have become more diverse. The 2025 conclave was the most geographically diverse in history, a result of Francis’s emphasis on diversity and his rejection of nationality or geography as determinants for the papacy.
Although Europe remains over-represented in the College of Cardinals, the increased geographic diversity of its leadership reflects the growing influence of Africa and Asia within the Catholic Church.
Pope Leo XIV’s election as the first North American Pope, following Francis as the first Latin American Pope, further emphasizes this globalization. Leo, a dual Peruvian-American national, was born in Chicago but spent much of his life and Catholic leadership in Europe and Peru. He spent 20 years in Peru, initially in Trujillo and later as bishop of Chiclayo from 2014 to 2023. Subsequently, he held a highly influential Vatican position in Rome, heading Francis’s primary advisory group for selecting new bishops. With connections to the U.S., South America, and Europe, Leo has a broad reach.
