When Elise Allen, senior correspondent for Crux, sat down with Pope Leo XIV for his first full-length interview since his election, she heard echoes of Pope Francis’ inclusive vision—“todos, todos, todos”—but also a key difference. As she told Colleen Dulle and Gerard O’Connell, hosts of “Inside the Vatican,” that when it comes to affirming church teaching, Leo is “much more willing to say that upfront and to just be super clear about that, drawing the line from the beginning.”

In the interview, Elise explained how Leo’s pastoral experiences have formed him into a leader whose ministry embodies synodality in action. He empowered lay leaders, particularly women, as a parish priest in Peru. As prior general of the Augustinians, he confronted corruption within his religious order. Returning as bishop of Chiclayo, Peru, he handled clergy sex abuse cases and investigated the controversial lay society Sodalitium Christianae Vitae. This collaborative approach has deep roots in the Latin American church, she said, where “the Augustinians were doing it for decades” and “the rest of the church is catching up.” She noted that “synodality is really at the core of what he wants to do,” and while Francis set the vision, Leo is “a very practical person.” She expects, in his pontificate, “more commissions, more teams—that sort of blended leadership, blended collaboration as things go forward.”

Her book, León XIV, ciudadano del mundo, misionero del siglo XXI, is out now in Spanish from Penguin Peru, with an English edition expected in early 2026.

Links from the show:

In new biography, Pope Leo weighs in on Trump, LGBTQ Catholics and the Latin Mass

How Pope Leo plans to govern the church: From Rome to China to Gaza

Pope Leo meets with board of global organization of clergy sexual abuse victims to talk zero-tolerance

Pope Leo declares seven new saints, including first from Venezuela and Papua New Guinea

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