Br Mark O’Connor met Pope Leo in Rome as the world’s cardinals met against a backdrop of escalating conflicts and Leo’s interventions on the limits of war.
While Leo’s message to the cardinals sets a clear direction for a synodal church in continuity with Francis’ papacy, his first encyclical and his recent visit to Spain – where his appeal to Europe’s complex past and focus on migrants came to the fore – reveal a pope finding his voice amid pressure from both the geopolitical stage and the church’s internal critics.
Alternative links to listen to the podcast are below.
Br Mark O’Connor FMS is the Vicar for Communications in the Diocese of Parramatta and the Pope Francis Fellow, Newman College, University of Melbourne.
