General
Leo XIV Outlines a Path for a Modern Church That Follows Francis’ Steps
The new pope said he would be guided by a key document that his predecessor wrote listing the church’s priorities, including a “loving care for the least and the rejected.”
In his first formal address to Roman Catholic cardinals, Pope Leo XIV on Saturday said he would continue the work of Pope Francis in steering the church in a more missionary direction, with greater cooperation among church leaders and a closeness to the marginalized.
Leo said he was committed to following a path of modernization that the Church began in the 1960s, and cited a major document that Francis issued in 2013. From that document, Leo highlighted multiple objectives, including “growth in collegiality,” “popular piety,” a “loving care for the least and the rejected,” and “courageous and trusting dialogue with the contemporary world.”
“Francis masterfully and concretely set it forth,” Leo said, referring to the document, called Evangelii Gaudium.