Pope Leo XIV prays with archbishop

Pope Leo XIV prayed with Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally at the Vatican on April 27 and said Catholics and Anglicans must keep working through their differences. (vaticannews.va) (abcnews.com) The two leaders met in the Apostolic Palace and prayed together in the Urban VIII Chapel before exchanging gifts. Leo told Mullally that divisions should be faced “no matter how intractable they may appear.” (vaticannews.va) (usnews.com) Mullally is the first woman to serve as Archbishop of Canterbury and the spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion. Her Rome trip was billed by Lambeth Palace as a four-day pilgrimage to strengthen Anglican-Roman Catholic relations. (abcnews.com) (au.news.yahoo.com) The symbolism was unusually sharp because women’s ordination remains one of the clearest barriers between the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. Leo has shown no sign he intends to change Catholic teaching on ordaining women. (religionnews.com) (msn.com) The meeting also landed as Leo’s wider priorities are being closely parsed after his April Africa trip. Reuters reported that he used that tour to denounce despotism and war and to argue that inequality and justice should take priority over sexual ethics in the church’s public witness. (usnews.com) (aol.com) On the same day, Leo blessed the cornerstone of the new Pope Francis Heart Centre at Rome’s Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic. He told hospital leaders that expansion should stay rooted in professional excellence and Christian formation. (vaticannews.va) That pairing — prayer with an Anglican archbishop and a hospital ceremony named for Pope Francis — added to the picture Leo is drawing in his first months. Vatican coverage has emphasized dialogue, service and institutional care more than doctrinal confrontation. (vaticannews.va 1) (vaticannews.va 2) (usnews.com) For now, Leo did not announce any breakthrough with the Church of England. He offered a prayer, a meeting and a pledge to keep talking across a divide that has lasted since the 16th century. (vaticannews.va) (usnews.com)