Pope Leo XIV calls cardinals for comment, framing his papacy as a joint effort after the Francis years

Rome- Pope Leo XIV has summoned Catholic cardinals from around the world to the Vatican for a meeting called an “extraordinary consistory,” to seek their guidance on the Catholic Church’s priorities for the years ahead.

“I’m here to listen,” Leo, a Chicago native and America’s first pope, said Wednesday in his opening remarks. “This day and a half together will mark the path ahead.”

Of the 245 members of the College of Cardinals, 170 of the so-called “princes of the Church” were in Vatican City to participate in the meeting.

As he moved forward, Leo asked the cardinals to select two of four possible topics for detailed discussions: the missionary nature of the church, future reforms of the Vatican bureaucracy, synodality, and liturgy.

A majority chose to prioritize missionary and synodal issues over the liturgy or Vatican reforms, according to Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni. That means the session is likely to focus on how to make the church more missionary and more responsive to the needs of the faithful.

Significantly, the cardinals chose not to discuss the liturgy, which would likely have seen them deal with divisions within the church over the celebration of the traditional Latin Mass, which became a flashpoint after Pope Francis significantly restricted its use.

The Latin Mass, also known as the Tridentine Mass, is controversial because it represents a form of Catholic worship that some say is out of touch with modern sensibilities. It is celebrated entirely in Latin, with the priest facing the altar and the faithful receiving communion on their tongues while kneeling. Critics argue it can seem inaccessible and limits parishioner participation, while supporters say it is a sacred preservation of tradition.

By simply calling the consistory, Pope Leo has underlined his commitment to involving the entire College of Cardinals in the governance of the Catholic Church, which has some 1.4 billion followers around the world according to the Vatican.

By contrast, during his 12 years of papacy, Pope Francis held only one extraordinary consistory, relying primarily on a small group of carefully selected advisors to help him chart the course of the church, a practice that left some cardinals feeling marginalized.

Since his election at the papal conclave in Maythe American pontiff’s tenure has been largely determined by commitments inherited from Francis, including the important events of the Holy Year 2025.

By convening the consistory immediately after those Holy Year events, Leo appears to be signaling the unofficial launch of his own pontificate and charting a course aligned with his priorities.

Leo signaled Wednesday that his papacy would be progressive, calling for the Second Vatican Council, a historic meeting in the 1960s known as Vatican II that was seen as a significant step in modernizing the Catholic Church, the “guiding star” of the Church’s journey under his leadership.

Among other things, Vatican II allowed masses to be celebrated in local languages, not just traditional Latin. It also introduced simpler rites and encouraged greater participation of active lay people in congregations, and consolidated better relations between Catholics, Jews and people of other faiths, and promoted the church’s engagement with the modern world.