Leo XIV: The Art of Listening

Ahead of the conclave that elected Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost OSA to succeed Pope Francis in the See of Peter, legendary Vatican beat journalist John L. Allen Jr. – who died last week at the age of 61 – described the man we now know by the name of Pope Leo XIV as as a great listener who skillfully kept his own counsel.

Leo XIV’s still very young pontificate indeed highlights the centrality of listening as a core leadership value.

Rather than implement sweeping changes out of the gate, Leo XIV is taking a measured approach to the Vatican’s complex landscape, bringing subtle reforms that reflect a preference for understanding and patience over abrupt transformation.

The Pope’s approach to key appointments in his new pontificate shows continuity. While these decisions are eagerly awaited, they have come sparingly and without fanfare. The last notable appointment was on January 22nd: Archbishop Roberto Maria Redaelli of Gorizia became secretary of the Dicastery for the Clergy.

The 70-year-old Redaelli had been president of Caritas Italia since 2019, suggesting that he was known—and recommended to the Pope—by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization. In fact, however, the Pope may also have known him as a member of the Delicta Riservata commission.

Redaelli is first and foremost a canonist, and this is a characteristic that seems to dominate Leo XIV’s choices.

His profile is similar to that of Filippo Iannone, whom Leo appointed to lead the Dicastery for Bishops, and to that of the new assessor of the Secretariat of State, Monsignor Anthony Ekpo, who is best known for his book on the reform of the Curia.

This raises a key question: how has Leo XIV’s leadership style, grounded in listening, manifested in practice?

First and foremost, Leo XIV has demonstrated that he has grasped the heart of some of the most pressing problems facing Rome, indeed that he had already deeply understood the core issues when he came into the office.

Upon arriving at the Roman Curia in 2023, Prevost immediately had to deal with the reform of the Curia desired by Pope Francis and the necessary adjustments. Often, in discussions among high-ranking prelates, reference was made precisely to a lack of organization, the need to harmonize the reform with canon law, and the need for restructuring.

Leo XIV has so far chosen canonists of proven knowledge, and has generally – even studiously – avoided limelight-seekers in his choices for key positions. He has listened, identified problems, and sought solutions without fuss.

There is very little even hinting at ideology in the Pope’s decisions.

Redaelli’s appointment was accompanied by the usual complaints from supporters of the Mass according to what we used to call the usus antiquior, who are quick to point out that Redaelli had not supported the liberalization of the rite. But this issue was not the deciding factor in the Pope’s choice. Personal competence and even general esteem were the central criteria for the appointment.

Pope Francis often promoted attention to the peripheries, even dismantling tradition to bring new perspectives to the center.

Leo XVI, by nature, is not a personalist, and his early choices not only comport with his institutionalist character and temperament, but also are marked by his concern for maintaining a constant connection with tradition, including the tradition of symbols.

Tradition is memory and legacy, and Leo XIV immediately understood that, at least in the Vatican, they are crucial.

In selecting dicastery leaders, Leo XIV prefers candidates from historic Churches, like the recent Italian appointments—canonists raised in established traditions, regardless of ideology.

In fact, broadening the reasoning, Leo XIV also chose an Italian as nuncio to Israel and apostolic delegate to Palestine, calling Archbishop Giorgio Lingua to succeed Archbishop Tito Yllana.

Making geographic origin an issue is not parochial.

The Pope is not re-Italianizing but re-institutionalizing the Curia; hence, recent appointments tend to favor Churches with deeper historical traditions and stronger connections to the center.

Does this mean that the Pope is shifting his attention from the peripheries to the center?

Not necessarily.

This balancing act between center and periphery further affirms John Allen’s insight: Leo XIV leads by listening and withholding personal bias, keeping the focus on collective discernment. What Leo XIV has accomplished so far has been a general rebalancing of the Curia. There has been only one purge, and it concerned the Dicastery for the Clergy, where the previous secretary, André Gabriel Ferrada Moreira, was sent as bishop-archbishop of San Bartolomé Chillán, a diocese of little importance in Chile.

Most other senior officials remain in place, except for some changes at the Secretariat of State, mainly involving the assessor’s dismissal.

Taken together, these actions reflect a cautious strategy. So far, we don’t have a clear idea of what the Pope intends to do. We’ve seen two specific profiles chosen by the Pope for positions of responsibility: either they are expert canonists (Redaelli is 70, like Iannone) or they are people in whom the Pope places his trust, called not to high-level positions, but to be close to the Pope (this is the case of the Vice-Regent of the Papal Household, the Augustinian Edward Daniang Daleng ).

Leo XIV chose the new Archbishop of Westminster, Richard Moth, from a pool of conservative candidates, and the new Archbishop of New York,  Ronald Hicks, from among those considered a bridge.

In the appointment of bishops, then, the Pope also seems to prioritize listening to the local Churches, selecting candidates who can serve as bridges and overcome the “civil war” that began in the Church with Vatican II.

He is a new-generation Pope who will pragmatically address many divisions and look to experience and tradition when situations become complex, but his pragmatism is in service of the Church as an institutional reality with her own traditions, which are discounted or discarded at peril.

At least, that’s what the choices he has made at the beginning of his pontificate tell us.

Now, after a period of listening and rebalancing, major actions seem imminent. Leo XIV recently met with dicastery heads, fueling speculation about forthcoming appointments as his pontificate begins in earnest.

We’ll see.