In a lengthy and wide-ranging interview for a new biography of his life, Pope Leo XIV opens up about his background as history’s first U.S.-born pope and the first pope to hold Peruvian citizenship, jesting about who he would cheer for in a hypothetical World Cup, as well as his understanding of the papacy and current topics such as peace in Ukraine, his vision for synodality, and the polarization dividing much of the world.
Speaking to Crux Senior Correspondent Elise Ann Allen in the second of two interviews for her biography, Pope Leo said he would define Pope Francis’s process of synodality as “an attitude, an openness, a willingness to understand. Speaking of the Church now, this means each and every member of the church has a voice and a role to play through prayer, reflection…through a process.”
Pope Leo has also criticised the growing pay disparity between corporate leaders and ordinary workers, pointing to rising inequality as a driver of global division.
In the same interview, published on Sunday by Crux, the pope said:
“One very significant factor is the continuously wider gap between the income levels of the working class and the money that the wealthiest receive. For example, CEOs that 60 years ago might have been making four to six times more than what the workers are receiving, the last figure I saw, it’s 600 times more than what average workers are receiving.”
Referring to recent reports about Elon Musk’s projected status as the world’s first trillionaire, Pope Leo added:
“What does that mean, and what’s that about? If that is the only thing that has value anymore, then we’re in big trouble.”
The pope also warned of a decline in “a higher sense of what human life is about” as economic power becomes increasingly concentrated among a small number of technology and corporate elites.
Pope Leo, born in Chicago, served as a priest in Peru before moving to Rome in 2023 after being summoned to the Vatican by the late Pope Francis.
The remarks come amid a broader global debate over the wealth and influence of Silicon Valley executives and their impact on society.
Speaking to Crux Senior Correspondent Elise Ann Allen in the second of two interviews for her biography, Pope Leo said he would define Pope Francis’s process of synodality as “an attitude, an openness, a willingness to understand. Speaking of the Church now, this means each and every member of the church has a voice and a role to play through prayer, reflection…through a process.”
Pope Leo has also criticised the growing pay disparity between corporate leaders and ordinary workers, pointing to rising inequality as a driver of global division.
In the same interview, published on Sunday by Crux, the pope said:
“One very significant factor is the continuously wider gap between the income levels of the working class and the money that the wealthiest receive. For example, CEOs that 60 years ago might have been making four to six times more than what the workers are receiving, the last figure I saw, it’s 600 times more than what average workers are receiving.”
Referring to recent reports about Elon Musk’s projected status as the world’s first trillionaire, Pope Leo added:
“What does that mean, and what’s that about? If that is the only thing that has value anymore, then we’re in big trouble.”
The pope also warned of a decline in “a higher sense of what human life is about” as economic power becomes increasingly concentrated among a small number of technology and corporate elites.
Pope Leo, born in Chicago, served as a priest in Peru before moving to Rome in 2023 after being summoned to the Vatican by the late Pope Francis.
The remarks come amid a broader global debate over the wealth and influence of Silicon Valley executives and their impact on society.