Yesterday afternoon Pope Leo XIV met with 15 people from Belgium who were abused when they were minors by members of the clergy. The meeting lasted almost three hours and concluded with an intense moment of prayer. The Holy See Press Office described the pope’s meeting with the survivors, each of whom was abused by a member of the clergy while a minor, as “profound and painful.” The office said the meeting took place “in a spirit of closeness, listening, and dialogue.” It is not a foreign topic to Leo XIV and it is surely especially painful for him due to the episodes experienced in his time as bishop in Chiclayo and which still linger with many dark points that would be good to clarify as soon as possible, for his own good and for that of the entire Church.
In a video message addressed to young people from various nations gathered in front of the Košice Cathedral in Slovakia, Pope Leo XIV said: «In a world often marked by divisions and suspicions, be «bridge builders and sowers of trust», do not be afraid to bear witness that you are Christians, to live the Gospel with enthusiasm and to share the joy that comes from the encounter with the Lord». “In every situation of our life, we will experience that we are never alone, because as children we are always loved, forgiven, and encouraged by God»;
Pope Leo XIV will hold the first extraordinary consistory of cardinals of his pontificate in January. From January 7 to 8, 2026, all cardinals will meet in Rome for an extraordinary consistory, a special meeting to discuss key issues facing the Church. According to a brief statement sent to the cardinals: «In due time, the Dean of the College of Cardinals will send Your Eminence the corresponding letter with more details».
Pope Francis celebrated only two consistories during his twelve years of pontificate. The first, in 2014, was convened to address the theme of the family before the Synod on the Family. Kasper delivered his controversial speech in which he suggested that there should be a way for divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the sacraments . Müller , among others, then prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, quickly denounced Kasper’s speech, emphasizing that communion for the divorced and “remarried” is impossible and would undermine the institution of marriage. “The dogma of the Church is not just any theory elaborated by some theologians, but the doctrine of the Church, nothing less than the word of Jesus Christ, which is very clear. I cannot change the doctrine of the Church”. The speech by Kasper laid the groundwork for Francis’s apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia in 2016 , in which the late pontiff hinted that divorced and “remarried” Catholics could receive Holy Communion in certain cases. Pope Francis did not hold another extraordinary consistory until 2022, which focused exclusively on the reforms of the Roman Curia and the government of the Church.
Pope Leo XIV will close the 81st General Assembly of the Italian Episcopal Conference , scheduled from November 17 to 20, 2025, in Assisi , at the Domus Pacis of Santa Maria degli Angeli. After the approval of the Summary Document by the third Synodal Assembly, the bishops will be called to discuss the priorities, resolutions, and notes developed from the voted text. The conclusion with Pope Leo XIV , scheduled for the morning of Thursday, November 20 and will be held behind closed doors,
Parolin will be the papal legate for the celebrations on November 13 at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in Pompeii, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Icon of Our Lady of the Rosary, which marked the birth of the Shrine and the new city. Papal letter in Latin in which he states that «after the arrival of the venerable image of Our Lady of the Rosary to the Valley of Pompeii on November 13, 1875, the role of the Virgin in the mystery of the Incarnate Word and of the Mystical Body and the commitments of the faithful have happily united, giving rise to great works of charity».
In the world there are at least seven cities called ‘León’, one in Mexico, two in the United States, another in Nicaragua, in France, in the Philippines, and the Spanish León. A priest from Zamora, from the Spanish Zamora, during the meeting with members of the International Religion and Society Foundation, gave a peculiar gift to Pope Leo XIV. The gift consisted of a framed photograph of a traffic sign on the national road N-630 that indicates “León 14 km”. The image, taken by the priest himself, shows a sign pointing to the proximity to the city of León, but also evokes the name of the new pontiff: Leo XIV.
Leo XIV will preside today over the Holy Mass of Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in the Basilica of St. John Lateran . The only church whose dedication is commemorated in all communities of the world . The Basilica of the Most Holy Savior —that was its original name— was consecrated on November 9, 324 , after its construction commissioned by Saint Helena and Emperor Constantine , in fulfillment of the Edict of Milan, which guaranteed Christians freedom of worship. Only later were the titles of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist added, but its essence remained intact: the Pope’s cathedral , the church of his episcopal chair . Even today it holds the unique title of Archbasilica , sign and bond of unity for the entire Church. One year ago we celebrated the seventeenth centenary of the Dedication (324-2024).
Leo XIV wanted to take time to meet the American actor De Niro, the legendary protagonist of The Mission, Roland Joffé’s masterpiece, considered a cult film in the religious world, to the point that it is difficult to find a missionary who has not seen it, including Prevost, who for more than twenty years served as a missionary in the most difficult areas of Peru. “Good morning. It’s a pleasure to meet you”. De Niro proceeded to introduce his two children, Drena and Julian Henry, and the other guests.
Elise Ann Allen presented in Lima and at the Hay Festival 2025, Arequipa, a biographical book about Leo XIV. «Yes, I had known Robert Prevost for years before. The first time was when he was in Chiclayo and I was investigating the Sodalitium case and I traveled to do interviews, one of those interviews was with him. We invited him to dinner at our house, in October of last year». «I thought, there are a thousand people writing a biography or something about him, so I sought to have his perspective. I explained the book project to him, that many people did not know him in Peru and the world, even other cardinals before the conclave did not know him. And I think the book pleased him and knowing that it would come out first in Peru».
Do you see the Pope as more Peruvian, more American, or now do you see him as universal? «He is a bit of everything, in Italian we say he is a mixed salad. He is really a citizen of the world, by his blood, by his experience, he knows the whole world and feels part of the place he is in, no matter where, if he is in Africa or the Philippines, with his Augustinian community, he feels part of it. But obviously the biggest influences are American culture and the Peruvian, in his style, his ways. With systems he is efficient, very gringo, very American, when working with him he is very American. But all his affection, his heart, is cholo, it is Peruvian». «Francis was a Pope who had more political instinct, Leo has less. When he speaks he does not have the political tone that Francis had. He speaks of politics, but as a pastor». «Leo XIV in the interview I did with him says that there is a problem in the relationship between faith and politics in the US, but I think it applies to other places as well. In the book I also explain a whole campaign that there was to discredit Prevost before his election, for Sodalitium vendettas. Right-wing groups will surely attack him more strongly. I think he is aware of that. He has seen it with Francis and knows what awaits him, but he will not stop preaching the Gospel. He knows the pressures he will receive from, for example, American conservatives. It is no secret that the American church finances many projects in the Vatican. With Francis, for example, many withdrew their donations because they did not like what he was saying about social issues, migration, climate, etc».
Vincent Gerard Nichols , metropolitan archbishop of Westminster, will cease to be an electing cardinal and, therefore, will not participate in a future Conclave. On November 5, 1991 , St. John Paul II appointed him Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster. In the year 2000 he was appointed Archbishop of Birmingham and on April 3, 2009 , Benedict XVI transferred him to the Metropolitan See of Westminster , appointing him successor to Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor. He was elected President of the Episcopal Conference. Pope Francis created him cardinal on February 22, 2014 , granting him the title of Most Holy Redeemer and St. Alphonsus in Via Merulana . He remains archbishop of Westminster until a successor is appointed.
The Catholic Nancy Pelosi, at 85 years old, has announced that she will not seek re-election. She will be remembered as the American Catholic politician who, more than any other, defended abortion and the LGBTQ+ ideology in the name of her Catholic faith. The Pelosi retires from politics, a shameful and regrettable situation for having been, until now, the worst practicing Catholic in politics. She was the maximum exponent of Catholic incoherence in politics and of the systematic trivialization and manipulation of non-negotiable principles and the Catechism, bending and eroding them to satiety, in order to please the Democrats and the pressure groups. Trump believes that «Nancy Pelosi’s retirement is something excellent for the United States… She was evil, corrupt, and only focused on the negative for our country».
Interview with Ettore Balestrero , Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy See to the UN and International Organizations in Geneva. «The message of the Holy See is based on universal principles —dignity, solidarity, common good— which, ultimately, come from God and, precisely for that reason, transcend cultures and religions». «In situations of crisis or tension, the Holy See acts as a facilitator of dialogue, often with discretion. Recently, for example, during the negotiations of the UNCTAD Ministerial Conference, the Holy See acted as a facilitator between countries with completely different views regarding the approach to economic development and sanctions. In this way, an important result was achieved in this historical period: a final declaration by consensus among the 195 member States». «The «recipe» would be simple: restore the absolute primacy of human dignity and the common good. It is repeated like a mantra, but only with difficulty and rarely achieved, in a world where States often struggle fiercely to maintain or strengthen their positions at any cost».
Pope Leo XIII witnessed the birth of the industrial revolution that brought much suffering and in 1891 wrote the encyclical Rerum Novarum , a text that changed history. He affirmed that the human being can never be reduced to an instrument of the economy or profit, that he possesses an inalienable dignity and spoke of a just wage, of solidarity, and of the State’s responsibility for the common good. Leo XIII defended the workers and Leo XIV calls us today to a mysticism of responsibility: a way of life that transforms the social world because it first understands it spiritually. Europe is going through a crucial moment. We have peace, prosperity, and democracy, but we feel that something has cracked. Even the German Episcopal Conference writes in Europe – gestalten und verantworten (2014): «Europe needs more than institutions and markets. It needs a soul. This soul is born from respect for human dignity, openness to God, and awareness of mutual responsibility». Pope Benedict XVI declared before the Bundestag (2011): «Democracy is not governed solely by majorities, but by criteria that transcend man himself». A democracy without God becomes totalitarian; without transcendence, without openness to heaven, it radicalizes, because it loses its measure. Europe needs a new spiritual balance: God as a source of freedom, not as an instrument of power.
«…do not make my Father’s house a market».
Good reading.