Not what, but who and how: Leo launches review in Rome

This Friday, thousands of local faithful, priests, religious, and active laypeople gathered at the Basilica of St. John Lateran to hear their bishop during the Diocese of Rome's assembly. Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the Pope’s vicar for the diocese, welcomed the Pontiff. Pope Leo XIV sat beside him at a table set up in front of the assembly and listened to several testimonies from Roman laypeople.

In a lengthy address, Pope Leo XIV invited everyone to conduct an “authentic discernment” regarding their pastoral approach, holding up St. Mary Magdalene as a model. He pointed out how, on Easter morning, she was more concerned about Jesus than about organizational questions.

To achieve this, there’s no need to “start from scratch,” the Pope said, adding that “nothing of what we have experienced should be shelved.” He highlighted the ongoing relevance of two initiatives launched by his predecessor, Pope Francis. The first is the reflection on “spiritual diseases” that began in 2018 in Roman parishes. The second is the Synod on Synodality. This major global process, initiated by the Argentine pope in 2021, is set to enter a new phase of discernment within dioceses this winter.

Rather than introducing a “new pastoral program,” Pope Leo XIV proposed that the Catholics of Rome go deeper into a “new dimension: that of pastoral review.” He explained his expectations, noting, “It’s about stopping together and asking ourselves, for everything we do: Why are we doing it?” This discernment should then make it possible “to recognize what must be maintained, valued, corrected, abandoned, or started.”

The Pope specifically called for the “courage to let go of something we’re fond of” if necessary. He also emphasized the importance of doing “less, but better.”

With this in mind, the Pontiff prioritized fostering an encounter with Christ. He explained that the Church “doesn’t exist for itself, but to lead everyone to an encounter with the Lord.” The Pope also stressed the need to reach out to young people and offer them “time to listen.”

He asked the faithful to “create communities,” leaving room for authentic relationships, where individuals “feel like part of a people.” They should feel welcomed, accompanied, appreciated, and they should feel that they share responsibility for the community. In recent years, Rome’s vicar, Cardinal Reina, has frequently raised the alarm about the growing impoverishment of a segment of the city's population.

The Pope emphasized the importance of teaching the faithful how to be missionary disciples, making them grow in their faith, and helping them become more responsible within the Church. He also highlighted Rome’s need for priests who “listen before answering” and “discern before deciding.” They should also spend time in the Lord’s presence, because no one can lead others to an encounter with Christ without living it themselves. Priests should recognize the charisms of their faithful and share responsibility with them.

To applause, he announced that he had approved the opening of the cause of beatification for Father Luigi Di Liegro, a priest of the Diocese of Rome who died in 1997. The late priest founded the local branch of Caritas. The Pope also thanked the permanent deacons, saying they remind the Church that it “exists to serve.”

Warmly thanking all the members of the diocese, Pope Leo XIV explained that this period of pastoral discernment in parishes should open a phase of sharing experiences. This will be followed by a “common path that will prepare us, together, for the Jubilee of Redemption in 2033,” a year commemorating the 2,000th anniversary of the death and resurrection of Jesus.