Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

This photo taken and handout on May 10, 2025 by The Vatican Media shows Pope Leo XIV during a meeting with cardinals  in The Vatican. Handout/The Vatican Media via AFP

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:958px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17515978686991747043481809AFP__20250510__467J2NP__v2__HighRes__VaticanReligionPope.webp" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">This photo taken and handout on May 10, 2025 by The Vatican Media shows Pope Leo XIV during a meeting with cardinals  in The Vatican. <em>Handout/The Vatican Media via AFP</em></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:left"><br/></div><p>VATICAN CITY, Holy See — Pope Leo XIV heads off on holiday on Sunday, having spent his first two months as Catholic leader rebuilding unity and bolstering tradition after his predecessor&#x27;s unorthodox papacy.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/7/3/pope-leo-takes-a-holiday-at-castel-gandolfo-revives-centuries-old-tradition-0728">Pope Leo takes a holiday at Castel Gandolfo, revives centuries-old tradition</a></div><p>&quot;Prudent&quot;, &quot;methodical&quot; and &quot;listening&quot; are some of the words used by Vatican insiders who spoke to AFP to describe the approach of the first American pope, who took over on May 8 as head of the world&#x27;s 1.4 billion Catholics.</p><p>Leo was elected by cardinals following the death of Argentina&#x27;s Pope Francis, a charismatic reformer who sparked worldwide devotion but also internal Church divisions during his 12-year papacy.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/8/pope-leo-xiv-cardinal-robert-prevost-elected-as-new-leader-of-catholic-church-0127">Prevost becomes first US pope as Leo XIV</a></div><p>Francis shook things up from the outset, eschewing the ornate garb and palaces of his predecessors, but his successor has moved more carefully, emphasizing tradition and unity.</p><p>On the all-important symbols, Leo has returned to wearing the traditional red mozzetta -- short cape -- and stole over his white papal robes.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/metro-style/people/2025/5/18/the-pope-leo-xiv-effect-why-we-believe-in-our-new-pope-1203">The Pope Leo XIV Effect: Why We Believe In Our New Pope</a></div><p>He will take a summer break from July 6 to 20 at the papal palace at Castel Gandolfo, outside Rome, a longtime country residence for pontiffs that Francis declined to use.</p><p>Leo is also expected to move into the papal apartments of the Vatican&#x27;s Apostolic Palace in the autumn after extensive renovations, according to a Vatican source.</p><p>Francis had rejected the palace in favor of a simple apartment in the Santa Marta guesthouse.</p><p>On policy matters, Leo has given numerous speeches but has so far avoided taking positions that might cause offense and has made no major appointments.</p><p>In public, he smiles and engages with the crowds who flock to see him in St Peter&#x27;s Square, from blessing babies to singing along to the chants of the Chicago White Sox, his favorite baseball team.</p><p>But the discreet former missionary -- who spent two decades in Peru before joining the Roman Curia, the Catholic Church&#x27;s governing body, in 2023 -- has so far kept to the script and followed protocol.</p><p>&quot;His style is simplicity... He is a presence that does not impose itself on others,&quot; said Roberto Regoli, a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.</p><p>&quot;With him, rather than looking at appearances, you have to focus on the content,&quot; he told AFP.</p><div><strong>&#x27;SOME RELIEF&#x27;</strong></div><p>Charles Mercier, a professor of contemporary history at the University of Bordeaux, said Leo appeared keen to promote the institution over himself as an individual.</p><p>&quot;Francis had a personal charisma that he greatly emphasized through his personality. Leo seems to want to blend into an institution, the papal office, that is more than him,&quot; he told AFP.</p><p>The approach has won Leo support within the Curia.</p><p>Employees who spoke to AFP described a man who was &quot;pragmatic&quot;, &quot;impressively calm&quot;, &quot;measured and methodical&quot;, &quot;thoughtful&quot; and &quot;concerned about balance&quot;.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/9/10-things-to-know-about-pope-leo-xiv-2049">10 things to know about Pope Leo XIV</a></div><p>&quot;He is someone who listens a lot, who needs to understand how things work before making decisions,&quot; explained one employee of a dicastery, a Vatican government department.</p><p>Even those speaking under cover of anonymity offered a broadly positive tone, reflecting how in just two months, Leo has re-engaged with the Curia.</p><p>&quot;The Curia was shaken up by Pope Francis, with reforms decided sometimes unilaterally, even in an authoritarian manner, and often badly received,&quot; a Vatican source told AFP on condition of anonymity.</p><p>The arrival of Leo -- &quot;who has a good reputation&quot;, according to the source -- &quot;brought some relief&quot;.</p><p>&quot;We feel that things will be fluid, less personal,&quot; they added.</p><p>A phrase Leo uttered during his first meeting with the Curia on May 24 made a lasting impression: &quot;Popes come and go, the Curia remains.&quot;</p><p>This contrasts sharply with the criticism dealt out by Francis, who accused the Curia early in his papacy of &quot;spiritual Alzheimer&#x27;s&quot; and a lust for power.</p><div><strong>ASSURANCES</strong></div><p>&quot;It&#x27;s clear we&#x27;re in a phase of hug therapy,&quot; commented a European diplomatic source.</p><p>Another envoy to the Holy See added that Leo was &quot;pursuing a unifying approach -- exactly what he was elected to do&quot;.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/12/leo-xiv-gets-down-to-business-on-first-full-week-as-pope-1803">Leo XIV gets down to business on first full week as pope</a></div><p>Francis was also accused by critics of sidelining doctrine in favor of social issues, notably migration, even if he did not in fact change major tenets of Catholic belief.</p><p>In his first few weeks, Leo reaffirmed the celibacy of priests, defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman, and urged bishops to stand firm against sexual abuse, a scandal that still roils the global Church.</p><p>Despite criticizing US President Donald Trump&#x27;s migration policy before becoming pope, Leo has barely mentioned the subject since taking office, although he has emphasized the importance of social justice.</p><p>On the diplomatic front, Leo has renewed calls for peace in Gaza and in Ukraine.</p><p>He discussed the latter conflict with Russia&#x27;s Vladimir Putin in a telephone call on June 4, where he urged the president to make a &quot;gesture that favors peace&quot;.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/6/11/first-china-bishop-appointed-under-pope-leo-0151">First China bishop appointed under Pope Leo</a></div><p>Francis had not spoken to Putin since before Russia&#x27;s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.</p><p>Just as his overtures to the Curia have been well received, Leo&#x27;s return to the traditional symbols of the papacy has been welcomed by those in the Church who accused Francis of distorting the papal office.</p><p>But Mercier noted that this did not rule out change in the future.</p><p>Leo is aiming for a &quot;symbolic rebalancing that undoubtedly stems from the desire to unite the Catholic flock, which has given the impression of being polarized under Francis&quot;, he said.</p><p>But, he added, it could also be a strategy &quot;to provide symbolic assurances to enable continued progress on the substance&quot;.</p><div><strong>—By Clément Melki, Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/u3YDe91K0gw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>"Prudent", "methodical" and "listening" are some of the words used by Vatican insiders to describe the approach of the first American pope</p>

"Prudent", "methodical" and "listening" are some of the words used by Vatican insiders to describe the approach of the first American pope

'Hug therapy': How Pope Leo is trying to unify Vatican

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'Hug therapy': How Pope Leo is trying to unify Vatican

Agence France-Presse

Published Jul 04, 2025 11:35 AM PHT

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