Pope Leo’s Meeting with Married Gay Couple Shows Pastoral Openness, Says Journalist
Pope Leo XIV recently met two married gay men and received them “without hesitation, with warmth and kindness,” as one journalist described the encounter.
Alex Capecelatro shakes hands with Pope Leo, while husband Brian Stevens looks on.
Pope Leo met with Alex Capecelatro, a tech entrepreneur, and his husband Brian Stevens, a devout Catholic and philanthropist. The couple was part of a delegation accompanying the Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, José Gomez, on his trip to Rome. Capecelatro and Stevens spoke with the Pope personally in what Capecelatro described as a “heartwarming” moment. Both reported that they felt welcomed by Pope Leo and were able to share how their lives have been impacted by the ministry of Father James Martin, SJ, at which point the Pope nodded in agreement.
For Stevens, a lifelong Catholic and a Knight of Malta, the encounter was particularly significant. “[Stevens] has a great love for God,” said Cardinal Roger Mahony, Archbishop Emeritus of Los Angeles and a close friend of Stevens. “He enjoys being around people and would be a wonderful ambassador for the Church when it comes to welcoming others.” To be able to share his story and his passion for the Church with the pope, all while being accompanied by his husband, was an incredibly powerful moment for Stevens.
Mario Trifunovic described the hopeful meeting in an essay for Katholisch.de which included his assessment of Pope Leo’s relationship with LGBTQ+ Catholics thus far, noting that the pope shows “openness towards LGBTQ Catholics…without abandoning tradition.”
According to Trifunovic, Pope Leo’s meeting with the couple demonstrates his attitude of openness, even amidst a variety of opinions and voices within the Church that speak of desires for him to take a harsher stance in matters concerning LGBTQ+ Catholics. Trifunovic offered a startling example:
“Just a few days [after the pope’s meeting with the couple], openly gay TV host Gio Benitez was received into the Catholic Church in the United States. His husband was his godfather. During the Mass, both received Holy Communion. Jesuit Martin concelebrated the service, and Benitez thanked him for leading him to the church and accompanying him. But not everyone reacted positively. At the last fall meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Joseph Strickland, excommunicated by Pope Francis from Tyler, Texas, rose and called on his fellow bishops to issue a statement : They had to address the fact that James Martin had presided over the Confirmation and Communion of a ‘married’ gay man. However, there was no reaction from the bishops in the assembly, including the rather conservative new president of the U.S. Bishops’ Conference , Archbishop Paul Coakley. Strickland then added another point with an X : ‘I say it now to Pope Leo, to the bishops, and to all who claim to be disciples of Jesus Christ: ‘How long will you continue to limp back and forth between two masters?’ He called on the bishops to ‘stop their games.’” .
Additionally, the writer offered the example of retiredCardinal Robert Sarah, originally from West Africa, who has publicly stated that hehopes Pope Leo will ask for a re-evaluation of Fiducia supplicans, the document which allowed for the blessing of people in same-gender relationships calling the document “theologically weak” and “unjustified.”
However, Trifunovic cites Leo’s meeting with LGBTQ+ Catholics like Capecelatro and Stevens, as well as his message of “openness and acceptance” shared with Fr. James Martin in his private meeting in September, as evidence that Pope Leo will “ [pursue] a course that attempts to combine openness with Church doctrine.” The writer explains:
“He emphasizes that everyone should be welcome in the Church and that no one should be excluded. However, he rejects any weakening of the Church’s sexual morality and underscores marriage between a man and a woman, as well as the traditional family, as the foundation of society.
“Leo’s overall approach seems to be to avoid altering Church doctrine in order to prevent further division within the Church, while simultaneously accommodating certain pastoral concerns.”
It’s a hopeful sign that Pope Leo is open to meeting with and listening to LGBTQ+ Catholics. Meetings such as these are crucial for increasing an awareness and understanding of queer Catholics as integral members of the Body of Christ, and hopefully it is through these meetings that Pope Leo may come to a greater understanding of what it would mean to have a Church that is truly inclusive and welcoming of all LGBTQ+ members.
—Phoebe Carstens, New Ways Ministry, December 18, 2025
Does anyone else want to know : WHY WAS JOSEPH STRICKLAND EVEN ALLOWED TO BE THERE – and allowed to speak? I had to stop center my self and go back and read the article again.
Bro. Thomas Berube
A technical correction to this good article: Bishop Joseph Strickland was not ‘excommunicated’ but rather was removed from his job as bishop of a diocese. He remains a bishop, can still take part in meetings of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and, fortunately or unfortunately, can still speak at the bishops’ meetings. One can only hope that no one listens…
Bishop Joseph Strickland was not excommunicated by Pope Francis as was mistakenly noted in the article. He was removed as bishop of Tyler Texas but still remains a bishop and is entitled to be at national bishops meetings.
Hubris in the attitudes, written and spoken statements, and actions of Catholic church leaders may one day trip them up. After wandering 39 years outside the Catholic community, I reconnected three years ago. God sees me wondrously made and judges me not because I am gay but because I often fail to love his creation unconditionally. Yes, I may be wrong, but for now I am joyfully reunited in a worshipping community, following Jesus the best I can, depending on the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist to strengthen me on my newly rediscovered path to God within the communion of saints. My mantra, judge not lest ye be judged. May God have mercy on all of us.
I struggle with this. As an openly widowed and celibate 49yo gay man, I have a deep love for Jesus, His mother, and His bride, the Church. Yet I find it difficult to reconcile the Church’s teaching on family. There is nothing inherently wrong with its vision of family, but its rigidity about who a family should consist of can distance itself from the love God places in each heart love that, when received and lived authentically, becomes spousal love.
When the Church fails to recognize the bond God creates between two people, the gifts and testimony they could offer are lost. Thankfully, the two men discussed in the article show what it means to live one’s faith publicly and positively. We need more examples like this in the Church.
I pray for them and hope their ministry yields an abundant harvest.
Merry Christmas, everyone!🎄
Many years ago (1985) a Trappist Abbot told my husband and me that the Church will change but not in our lifetime. He said that the pain and discrimination suffered by the LBGTQ community wa slike the blood of the early martyrs was bringing the change. Although I would like the church to move faster in dealing with our community, change is coming. Thank you Pope Francis and Pope Leo.
Today’s gospel tells us about “Joseph the Dreamer” who took Mary to wife after planning on divorcing her because of her “unusual” pregnancy. Mary is the symbol of Church and Humanity and Joseph the “Protector of the Church”. May Joseph continue to protect LGBT pesons in church and society who many people consider “wrongly conceived”. God’s ways were and ARE mysterious and we’re all part of that mystery. As Adrian van Kaam reminded us: “Faith is not the prerogative of any religion. It’s an attitude of trust in the original meaningfulness of life, even when beliefs are shattered”. [in ON BEING YOURSELF: Reflections on Spirituality and Originality, p., 71]
Thank you, New Ways Ministry. We were very lucky to have the chance to meet Pope Leo. Thanks to our Archbishop. I never thought I could come out to a Pope before. While this has stirred up some opposition, I hope we have given courage to others. I know two things. 1) I am Catholic and 2) I am gay.