Pope Leo XIV has moved to calm tensions within the Catholic Church by declaring that he does not plan to alter the Church’s long-standing doctrine on same-sex marriage or the ordination of women as deacons.
In his first major interview since becoming pontiff four months ago, the 70-year-old US-born pope emphasized that while attitudes of welcome and compassion must continue to evolve, the Church’s official teachings will remain in place for the foreseeable future.
“People want the Church doctrine to change, want attitudes to change,” Pope Leo said in an interview with journalist Elise Ann Allen for the new book Pope Leo XIV: Global Citizen, Missionary of the 21st Century, published Thursday in Peru.
“We have to change attitudes before we even think about changing what the Church says about any given question.”
The remarks mark a shift in tone from his predecessor Pope Francis, who during his 12-year papacy encouraged greater inclusion of LGBTQ+ Catholics and initiated studies on the possibility of ordaining women deacons — moves that angered conservative factions, especially in Africa and the United States.
While Pope Leo said he shares Francis’s vision of a welcoming Church, he stressed that invitations to belong are not based on personal identity. He reaffirmed support for “the traditional family — father, mother, and children” and said it was “highly unlikely, certainly in the near future” that Church teaching on sexuality or marriage would be revised.
“I think that the Church’s teaching will continue as it is,” he said.
Pope Leo also signaled caution on the issue of women deacons, saying:
“I at the moment don’t have an intention of changing the teaching of the Church on the topic, though I am certainly willing to continue to listen to people.”
Addressing another contentious issue, the new pontiff called the sexual abuse crisis “a real crisis” but warned that accused clergy are “innocent until proven guilty” and should be “protected” as such. He said while the Church must continue reforms, the scandal will not define his papacy.
The pope reflected candidly on adjusting to life inside Vatican City and meeting with world leaders, admitting:
“It’s quite frankly not an easy thing to give up everything that you were and had in the past and take on a role that’s 24 hours a day, basically, and so public.”
Pope Leo added that he is more concerned about the widening global wealth gap than the Vatican’s own financial challenges, citing recent news about Elon Musk possibly becoming the world’s first trillionaire as a troubling sign of inequality.
“If that is the only thing that has value anymore, then we’re in big trouble,” he warned.
