Pope Leo XIV Meets LGBTQ+ Catholic Advocate, Pledges Continuity with Francis’ Approach

Pope Leo XIV met Monday with one of the most prominent advocates for greater LGBTQ+ inclusion in the Catholic Church, telling the Jesuit that he intended to continue Pope Francis’s policy of welcome and encouraging him to keep up his ministry.

The Rev. James Martin, a New York–based Jesuit author and editor, said the pope told him he heard the same message as under Francis: a desire to welcome all people, including LGBTQ people. The audience, which Martin said lasted about half an hour, was officially announced by the Vatican, signaling that Pope Leo wanted the meeting made public. Martin spoke to The Associated Press after the audience.

Martin described the encounter as consoling and encouraging and said it was "wonderful" and "a lot of fun." The meeting comes days before a planned Holy Year pilgrimage of LGBTQ+ Catholics to the Vatican, a trip organizers have said is meant to mark the churchwide observance and to seek recognition and inclusion.

Vatican officials made the audience public, a detail observers said underscored its significance as an early signal of continuity with Pope Francis, who more than any of his predecessors worked to make the church more pastoral and open toward LGBTQ people. Francis’ gestures and remarks over his papacy altered the tone of Vatican engagement with sexual minorities, and the meeting with Martin suggested Pope Leo intends to maintain that approach.

Martin has been one of the most visible Catholic voices advocating for pastoral outreach to LGBTQ people. He has written and spoken widely about the need for church ministers to offer accompaniment and dignity to people of differing sexual orientations and gender identities. He and his supporters framed Monday’s audience as an affirmation of those pastoral priorities.

The Vatican offered no detailed readout beyond confirming the private audience. Church watchers noted that early meetings and publicized audiences by a new pope are often read as signals of priorities and tone, especially when they involve figures associated with particular pastoral initiatives.

The planned Holy Year pilgrimage has drawn attention from both supporters who view it as a step toward recognition and critics who caution against reading single meetings as policy shifts. The Vatican’s official announcement of the audience, and Martin’s public remarks afterward, nonetheless contributed to expectations that Pope Leo will emphasize continuity with Francis on pastoral outreach to marginalized groups within the church.

Both supporters and critics of change in church practice and language will be watching how the Vatican defines and implements that pastoral vision in the months ahead.