On Monday, September 1, 2025, a quiet but momentous meeting took place in the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican. Pope Leo XIV, just shy of four months into his papacy, sat down with Reverend James Martin, a Jesuit priest from New York and one of the world’s most prominent advocates for LGBTQ+ inclusion in the Catholic Church. The half-hour audience, officially announced by the Vatican—a clear signal that the new pope wanted the world to take notice—has quickly become a touchstone for the ongoing debate about the Church’s future direction on LGBTQ+ issues.
According to The Associated Press, Reverend Martin emerged from the meeting with a message that echoed the words and tone of Pope Francis, who led the Church from 2013 to 2025. “I heard the same message from Pope Leo that I heard from Pope Francis, which is the desire to welcome all people, including LGBTQ people,” Martin told reporters. “It was wonderful. It was very consoling and very encouraging and frankly a lot of fun.”
This meeting comes at a pivotal moment. In just a few days, around 1,200 LGBTQ+ Catholics and their allies will embark on a Holy Year pilgrimage to the Vatican, organized in part by the Italian LGBTQ+ Catholic group Jonathan’s Tent and supported by Martin’s own ministry, Outreach. The pilgrimage, which includes a Mass at the Jesuit church in Rome celebrated by the vice president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, is not officially sponsored by the Vatican, but it appears on the Vatican’s calendar of Holy Year events. Vatican officials have clarified that such listings are for logistical purposes and do not imply endorsement, but the symbolism is hard to miss.
For many observers, the meeting between Leo and Martin is more than a ceremonial gesture. It represents a strong sign of continuity with Pope Francis, who, while never changing Church doctrine on sexuality, was widely seen as a friend to LGBTQ+ Catholics. From his now-famous 2013 question—“Who am I to judge?”—to his decision to allow priests to bless same-sex couples, Francis consistently emphasized welcome and inclusion. He also met with Martin on several occasions, named him an adviser in the Vatican’s communications department, and included him in the Synod of Bishops on Synodality, the Church’s multi-year process for discerning its future.
Yet, as Crux reports, the topic of LGBTQ+ inclusion remains deeply divisive within the global Church. The Synod of Bishops on Synodality, held from 2021 to 2024, allowed participants to discuss contentious issues such as the Church’s approach to LGBTQ individuals. Debate was so intense that references to LGBTQ inclusion were largely removed from the preparatory document for the final synod gathering in October 2024, as well as from the meeting’s summary document. The lack of consensus, especially among bishops from culturally conservative regions in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, highlighted just how fraught the topic remains.
Despite this, Pope Leo XIV’s approach appears to be one of listening, openness, and welcome. According to Martin, Leo told him directly that he intended to continue Francis’s policy of LGBTQ+ acceptance and encouraged him to keep up his advocacy. “He asked me to continue what I’m doing, which was very encouraging,” Martin said to the AP. Leo also reportedly emphasized the Church’s mission to work for peace and unity, citing ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Myanmar as priorities. But he returned to the theme of inclusion, using Francis’s famous phrase in Spanish: the Church is for “todos, todos, todos”—everyone.
Martin, who has been at the center of both praise and criticism for his ministry, described Leo as “joyful, relaxed, and serene” during their meeting. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Martin added, “He is a joy to be with!” The mood, it seems, was one of hope and genuine camaraderie. As The Independent notes, Martin has long been a lightning rod for conservative critics, but he has also been supported by Francis and now, it seems, by Leo. Martin’s 2017 book on how Catholic leaders should engage the gay community and his ongoing work with LGBTQ+ Catholics have made him a key figure in the Church’s evolving conversation on sexuality and inclusion.
The pilgrimage to Rome this week is seen by many as a concrete expression of this evolving welcome. Participants will attend a special Mass, a prayer service, and a procession to St. Peter’s Square for the pope’s Sunday Angelus address. The event is expected to draw LGBTQ+ Catholics from around the world and will be led by prominent Church officials, further signaling a shift—however incremental—toward greater acceptance.
Yet, not all groups are receiving the same level of access. Last month, rumors swirled that Pope Leo XIV would meet privately with the pro-LGBTQ+ group We Are Church during the Jubilee of the Synod Teams in October. These reports were quickly debunked by the group itself, which clarified in a press release that while they would participate in jubilee activities from October 24 to 26, they would not have a private audience with the pope. “We Are Church International wish to make it clear that we have not been invited to meet with Pope Leo XIV in October as reported in some media,” the organization stated. Nevertheless, their participation in Vatican events—albeit in a formal capacity for the first time—was seen as a “positive sign that confirms the Church is listening to everyone.”
For many Catholics, especially those in countries where homosexuality remains taboo or even criminalized, the gestures from Rome are both encouraging and fraught with complexity. The Church’s official teaching remains unchanged: while LGBTQ+ people are to be treated with “respect and dignity,” sexual relations outside of heterosexual marriage are still considered sinful. Francis, and now Leo, have walked a careful line—emphasizing welcome and accompaniment without altering doctrine.
As ABC News and The Advocate both highlight, Leo’s meeting with Martin and his public affirmation of inclusion are not merely symbolic. They send a message to Catholics around the world that the conversation about LGBTQ+ inclusion is not going away—and that, at least under this papacy, the door remains open. Whether this approach will lead to deeper changes in doctrine or practice is uncertain. What is clear is that the Church’s leadership is signaling a willingness to listen, to accompany, and, in Leo’s own words, to be a Church for “everyone.”
As the Holy Year pilgrimage gets underway and jubilee events approach, the eyes of Catholics—both LGBTQ+ and otherwise—will be on Rome, watching to see how this evolving legacy of welcome continues to unfold.