Pope Leo XIV Doubles Down on Doctrine of Openness and Welcome

The Vatican just dropped a bombshell that could reshape life for LGBTQIA+ Catholics. Pope Leo XIV, who has stirred debate since his election, declared this week that he will follow a pastoral path rooted in openness and welcome, according to the Associated Press. Many observers link this stance to his predecessor, Pope Francis. That message came back into focus after a private meeting with Jesuit priest and LGBTQIA+ advocate Father James Martin. Martin told reporters he heard from Leo the same words of welcome he once heard from Francis.

Pope Leo XIV is shifting his tone on LGBTQIA+ inclusion. 

In a half-hour private audience with prominent Rev. Martin, the pope urged continued pastoral work and emphasized unity and accompaniment rather than doctrinal revision, according to AP. The meeting was widely read as a signal that Leo intends to continue the pastoral emphasis that defined his predecessor’s papacy, even as Vatican officials insist the Catechism and formal teachings will not change.

“I heard the same message from Pope Leo that I heard from Pope Francis, which is the desire to welcome all people, including LGBTQIA+ people,” Martin told AP. “It was wonderful. It was very consoling and very encouraging and frankly a lot of fun.” Martin also shared on X (formerly Twitter) that he found Leo to be “serene, joyful, and encouraging” and praised the meeting as closely echoing the tone he had experienced under Pope Francis.

Despite the warmth of his message, Vatican officials have been clear that official Church teachings remain unchanged, according to the National Catholic Reporter. Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Vatican’s doctrine office, stated in July 2025 that the Church’s approval of blessings for couples in same-sex relationships, as laid out in the 2023 document Fiducia Supplicans, “will remain” under Pope Leo XIV. This approach mirrors Pope Francis’s practice, which already balanced traditional doctrine with a compassionate tone.

Pope Leo XIV was previously criticized for his beliefs. 

Before his election, then-Cardinal Robert Prevost had drawn criticism for labeling the “homosexual lifestyle” and same-sex families as problematic. In 2012, when he was the Augustinian prior general, Prevost delivered a pointed critique in an address to the synod of bishops. According to The Guardian, he warned that “Mass media” was damaging the Catholic Church.  

“Western mass media is extraordinarily effective in fostering within the general public enormous sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the Gospel — for example, abortion, homosexual lifestyle, euthanasia,” Leo warned. As Archbishop of Chiclayo in Peru, Prevost continued in this conservative vein. In 2016, he opposed teaching about gender identity in schools, calling the initiative confusing and arguing it promotes “genders that don’t exist,” according to the Catholic News Agency.

Leo’s remarks prompted concern among LGBTQIA+ advocacy groups. “We pray… his heart and mind have developed more progressively on LGBTQIA+ issues,” said Francis DeBernardo of New Ways Ministry. 

In 2023, under reporters’ scrutiny, Leo acknowledged that his views had evolved. “Doctrine hasn’t changed … but we are looking to be more welcoming and more open, and to say all people are welcome in the Church,” he said per Outreach. 

Does a welcoming tone without doctrinal change feel meaningful, or does it fall short? Comment below!

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