What does unity mean for Pope Leo? Feat. Massimo Faggioli

In the midst of contentious elections around the world, Pope Leo XIV is preaching unity, both in the Catholic Church and in the world. But what does unity—or “unity in diversity,” as Leo often advocates—look like in practice? Church historian Massimo Faggioli joins host Colleen Dulle to talk about Pope Leo’s effort and tactics for promoting unity and peace.

Find Dr. Faggioli’s new book, Leo XIV and the Global Church: Unity and Peace in English from Liturgical Press here (litpress.org/Products/03109/Leo-XIV-and-the-Gl…).

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Chapters:

0:00 Intro

1:40 Significance of a U.S.-born pope

5:42 Social vs. liberal vs. democratic Catholicism

11:55 Pope Leo XIV’s social Catholicism and its roots

15:41 Leo’s ability to speak to the United States

20:03 ‘Unity in diversity’ as a ‘spiritual posture’

25:22 Liturgy as a case study in Leo’s unity

28:09 Leo’s techniques for calm and unification

31:15 Synodality vs. collegiality under Pope Leo

36:33 Tensions between Catholicism and democracy

40:04 Catholics’ changing participation in U.S. politics

Links:

• Pope Leo will travel to Latin America just weeks after cancer surgery (americamagazine.org/vatican-dispatch/2026/10/2…)

• The bishops who prayed over Trump and apologized—and gave us a lesson in moral responsibility (americamagazine.org/many-things/2026/10/27/tru…)

• Archbishop of Detroit calls out voter suppression ahead of midterms: ‘It’s an affront to God’ (americamagazine.org/politics-society/dispatche…)

• Prevost’s Parish Ministry: The Chicagoland church that helped form Pope Leo XIV (americamagazine.org/features/2026/10/26/americ…)

• Montse Alvarado prepares to step into Vatican communications prefect role Nov. 1 (americamagazine.org/news/2026/10/27/montse-alv…)

Follow Gerry on X: @gerryorome (x.com/gerryorome)

Follow Colleen on Instagram: @colleendulle (instagram.com/colleendulle)

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