Despite being the first pope from America, a country where the Catholic Church is known for its relative conservatism, Pope Leo XIV — who spent much of his adult life working in Peru — is expected to largely continue his predecessor’s progressive reforms, despite some past comments criticizing the acceptance of LGBTQ+ “lifestyle choices.”
James Martin, an American Jesuit priest and the founder of Outreach, a prominent Catholic LGBTQ+ organization, told Salon that the new pope’s background in Latin America “means that he understands the global south,” a fact that likely contributed to his being selected as pontiff.
