As he gears up for his first Christmas as leader of the world’s Catholics, Pope Leo XIV is starting to show more noticeable differences in leadership style with his predecessor Francis.
Pope Leo has set a more guarded and formal tone than the charismatic Francis but is equally unafraid to speak his mind — even on sensitive topics like social justice, poverty and immigration.
“The pope communicates by how he dresses, his gestures, his signals,” Roberto Regoli, an Italian priest and a professor at the Vatican’s Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, told AFP.
Whereas “Francis’s style was very linked to his words” and improvisation, Leo XIV communicates emotions “with his face and his penetrating gaze”.
“He is not a physically imposing person,” he said, underlining his “soft” and “very assured” manner.
Robert Francis Prevost became the first US pope on May 8 and has so far differed little from his Argentine predecessor in terms of substance.
He has only had to make a few nominations to top Vatican positions — usually seen as a good indicator of papal intentions — since his election.
Leo has also not yet moved into the Apostolic Palace — which Francis eschewed for more humble lodgings nearby — and the Church’s long-planned Jubilee Holy Year has taken up much of his agenda.
On the international stage, Leo has only carried out one foreign visit to Turkey and Lebanon — which had already been decided under Francis.
But the trip earlier this month gave important insights into their different styles.
Pope Leo spoke with emotion but without being particularly effusive to fervent crowds in Lebanon.
He stuck to the text of written speeches and soberly greeted the faithful during the visit, remaining measured even in crowded environments.
– ‘Sure of his ideas’ –
Pope Leo has revived an old tradition of taking a weekly day of rest on Tuesdays in Castel Gandolfo — the papal summer residence near Rome which Francis had mostly stayed away from.
Leo said he plays tennis, swims, reads and takes phone calls there.
Everyone “should do some activity” in order “to look after themselves. Body, soul, all together”, the 70-year-old told journalists last month.
Before returning to the Vatican on Tuesdays, he usually answers journalists’ questions — a new way of communicating.
Francis granted several exclusive media interviews during his pontificate while Leo has only done one in seven months.
In recent weeks, he has become highly critical of US President Donald Trump — calling the treatment of migrants in the US “extremely disrespectful”.
“He doesn’t shy away from answering questions. He says what he thinks because he is sure of his ideas and his management,” Regoli said.
“He is really a modern head of state. He believes a pope can speak informally on issues that are not directly related to his remit,” a Vatican source said on condition of anonymity.
The pope’s message reaches a wide audience also because of his knowledge of languages.
He speaks confidently in English, Italian and Spanish, a language he masters well after spending two decades in Peru as a missionary.
– Cape and smartwatch –
In Vatican corridors there is some satisfaction with Leo’s greater respect for institutions and officialdom, a more methodical form of governance and detailed knowledge of the issues at stake.
“His timidity is also an evangelical way of working — of having respect for people because with Francis it was not aways the case,” a diplomatic source told AFP.
Francis was known for his sometimes explosive character in private and could dismiss staff from one day to the next.
Leo has also taken strong decisions — such as going back on some reforms in the running of the Vatican undertaken by his predecessor.
He has also brought back greater formality in papal wear, donning the red capes and gold-embroidered stoles that Francis had rejected.
The one novel twist on tradition is the smartwatch on his wrist that can sometimes be seen under the lace sleeve of his white garments.
