That there were so many people there was a sign of continuity with Francis, who worked hard to make the Catholic Church a friendlier place f...
.jpg "Pope Leo personally meets with an LGBTQ Catholic advocate and promises to carry on Francis' inclusive legacy.")
That there were so many people there was a sign of continuity with Francis, who worked hard to make the Catholic Church a friendlier place for LGBTQ Catholics.
Pope Leo XIV met with one of the most well-known advocates for LGBTQ inclusion in the Catholic Church on Monday and praised his work. This happened just days before a planned Holy Year journey of LGBTQ Catholics to the Vatican.
The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit author and editor from New York, said Leo told him he planned to keep Pope Francis' policy of LGBTQ acceptance in the church and told him to keep up his work.
Martin told The Associated Press after the audience, "I heard the same message from Pope Leo that I heard from Pope Francis: the desire to welcome everyone, including LGBTQ people." "It was great." It helped me feel better, gave me hope, and was just plain fun.
The Vatican made the meeting public, which shows that Leo wanted it to be known to everyone. It ran about thirty minutes.
Most of Leo's predecessors did not work to make the Catholic Church a more welcoming place for LGBTQ Catholics, but the crowd did. It was a strong sign of continuity with Francis. Francis stood out with his message of welcome, from the time he said, "Who am I to judge?" about a priest who was thought to be gay in 2013 to the time he decided priests could bless same-sex couples.
Francis met Martin several times during his 12-year papacy, from 2013 to 2025. He made Martin an advisor in the Vatican's communications department and invited him to his big meeting on the future of the church that would last for years. Still, Francis never changed the teaching of the church that gay acts are "intrinsically disordered."
There had been some doubt about Leo's view on LGBTQ Catholics. Soon after he was chosen in May, comments from 2012 came to light in which the future pope, who was then known as the Rev. Robert Prevost, said things that were against Catholic teaching about the "homosexual lifestyle" and the role of the media in encouraging same-sex relationships.
Catholic News Service asked Prevost if his ideas had changed when he was made a cardinal in 2023. He agreed with Francis's call for a more open church, saying that Francis "made it very clear that he doesn't want people to be left out just because of choices they make, whether it's their lifestyle, work, way of dressing, or anything else." The prevost then made it clear that the philosophy had not changed.
"We want to be more open and friendly, though, and let everyone know they are welcome in the church," he said.
Martin and Prevost worked together in the synod on the future of the church, so Martin knew Prevost and didn't worry about Leo's views because Martin had always found Leo to be "a very open, welcoming, and inclusive person."
"But it's great to hear that this will go on," Martin said, adding that Leo had told him that his main goals are to work for peace and unity, pointing out the wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Myanmar as examples.
Martin said that Francis famously said in Spanish that the church is open to everyone, todos. He also wanted to tell people that this is a church for everyone.
Martin helped start Outreach, a ministry that promotes LGBTQ acceptance. On Friday and Saturday, the ministry will be a part of a big Holy Year pilgrimage put on by the Italian LGBTQ Catholic group "Jonathan's Tent." An important part of the journey for about 1,200 people is a Mass at the Jesuit church in Rome that will be led by the second-highest member of the Italian bishops' conference. The pilgrimage is not publicly backed by the Vatican, but it is on the Vatican's list of events for Holy Year. Officials at the Vatican say that this kind of listing doesn't mean that the group is endorsed; it's just a way to make things easier for groups that want to plan pilgrimages and walk through the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica.
Martin said that the journey and his audience still send a message that is in line with what the church teaches: "that Jesus reaches out to people on the edges."
A message from Leo told him, "If people liked how Pope Francis treated LGBTQ Catholics, they'll like how Pope Leo treats them too." He told me to keep doing what I was doing, which made me feel good.