Pope Leo’s views on controversial issues revealed as major contrast to Pope Francis is highlighted
It seems that the newly-elected pope will take a difference stance on one controversial issue within the Catholic Church, opposing the late Pope Francis.
It was announced just yesterday (8 May) that Robert Francis Prevost is the new head of the Catholic Church, and will be known as Pope Leo XIV.
His predecessor, Pope Francis, was viewed as one of the most progressive popes of recent times, with refreshing takes on traditionally hot topics within the faith.
And while Pope Leo is set to be a somewhat similar character, there are a couple of things the two shared different perspectives on.
Advert
So, what do we know about Leo's stance on key issues?
Equality for women
A woman cannot become a priest (and therefore a pope), under Catholic canon law.
This rule dates back to the beginning of the church, and remains in place today. And it seems that Pope Leo is not about to change this any time soon.
The new pope has been firm and vocal about is stance on this key issue, and it's something that his predecessor agreed on.
In October 2023 during the Synod on Synodality, Leo said: "Something that needs to be said also is that ordaining women - and there’s been some women that have said this interestingly enough - ‘clericalizing women’ doesn’t necessarily solve a problem, it might make a new problem."
Despite the claim, it's not entirely clear what kind of 'problem' he was referring to.
He did later note, however, that women contribute 'a great deal to the life of the Church'.
The LGBTQ+ community
Pope Francis was extremely progressive in terms of the Roman Catholic approach to homosexuality and the LGBTQ+ community.
In October 2023, he issued a letter which stated: "We cannot be judges who only deny, push back and exclude."
The letter was written in support of the blessings of same-sex unions on a case-by-case basis.
But Pope Leo's approach to this may perhaps be a step backwards for the church.
In October 2024, he voiced the need for greater conversation around said blessings, citing the need to take 'cultural realities' into consideration.
He said: "The bishops in the episcopal conferences of Africa were basically saying, that here in Africa, our whole cultural reality is very different … it wasn’t rejecting the teaching authority of Rome, it was saying that our cultural situation is such that the application of this document is just not going to work.
The 69-year-old added: "You have to remember there are still places in Africa that apply the death penalty, for example, for people who are living in a homosexual relationship.
"So, we’re in very different worlds."
While Francis was openly critical of laws that discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community, calling them 'unjust', a 2012 statement from Leo expressed his dismay at the way the media express 'sympathy for beliefs and practices that are at odds with the gospel'.
Migrants
It seems that Leo's stance on migrants is very much in line with his predecessors.
A coordinator of a Peruvian Catholic group, Jesus Leon Angeles, personally knows the new pope, and stated that he has always shown care for Venezuelan migrants in Peru.
Pope Francis was very vocally against Trump's plan of mass deportation in the US, and once wrote: "The legitimate regulation of migration must never undermine the essential dignity of the person."
Climate change
From the little we do know about the newly-elected pope, climate change is big on his list of important issues.
It seems he will follow in the footsteps of Francis, who was very vocal about the climate crisis.
The late pope once said: "We are faced not with two separate crises, one environmental and the other social.
"But rather with one complex crisis which is both social and environmental."
The new pontiff has previously made calls for the Church to take greater action.
Topics: LGBTQ, Politics, Pope Francis, Pope Leo, Climate Change
Mia Williams