Pope Leo is earnest about working for unity within the Church. But can he achieve it by simply dialoguing with all sides?
By Eric Sammons
Crisis Magazine
January 23, 2026
It's been a little more than eight months since Cardinal Robert Prevost was elevated to Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church, and he's still a mystery. There's more we don't know about him than we do know. We can all speculate about how his pontificate will play out, but ultimately we need to realize that no one other than the Holy Spirit really knows (I suspect Pope Leo himself doesn't know!).
We've had hints, however, as to the new pope's priorities as well as his style of governing. While it would be dangerous to speculate too much based on hints and clues (let the professional Vaticanistas do that), we can still see general trends forming already. One of Leo's most important priorities seems to be an emphasis on unity within the Church, which can be seen in his words, actions, and his overall personality. Just a month into his pontificate, he urged priests to be " builders of unity and peace," telling them to provide "pastoral solutions that generate and regenerate faith by building good relationships, bonds of solidarity, and communities in which the style of communion shines forth."
One significant clue pointing to Leo's efforts at internal unity is the Church figures he has already met with. From Cardinal Burke to Fr. James Martin, the pope seems intent on listening to every perspective within the Church. He's committed to bringing those with diverse viewpoints and worldviews together in order to end-or at least reduce-the fierce battles raging among Catholics. It's a noble goal, and it makes sense that this is a papal priority. The past 60+ years have been marked by ideological fights within Catholicism, to the point where it's no longer possible to just call oneself "Catholic;" instead it's necessary to add a preceding label, like "conservative," or "liberal," or "traditional."
The infighting became particularly fierce during the pontificate of Leo's immediate predecessor, Pope Francis, who seemed to revel in trolling conservative-leaning Catholics generally and American Catholics in particular. He appeared to enjoy creating division, like when he said "It's an honor if Americans attack me," and when he almost dared his ideological opponents to go into schism.
This is not the way of Pope Leo. Unlike his predecessor, the current pontiff actually believes in the power of dialogue as more than a marketing ploy. He clearly wants to reconcile the warring factions of Catholicism and be a true "pontifex;" i.e., a bridge-builder. However, a question that should be asked: is this even possible ? Can unity actually be achieved in the way the pope seems to desire ? Can Fr. James Martin be united with Cardinal Burke, not just de jure, but de facto?
Here we must remember the key ingredient in any real unity, which is truth. A lasting, genuine unity requires that everyone involved agree on fundamental truths. It's not necessary to agree on everything, such as prudential decisions and practical plans, but when it comes to essential doctrines, agreement must exist for unity to exist. This inherent relationship between unity and truth is why both schism and heresy have always been the two great evils against Catholic communion; neither can be allowed for a full flourishing of the Church.
Historically, the East and the West have emphasized the importance of these twin evils in different ways. The East has been willing to be more flexible when it comes to schism, while being far more adamant about not allowing heresy. The West, on the other hand, has been more adaptable to heresy while fighting tooth and nail against schism.
We see these distinctive approaches in the East and West even today. Right now there is a schism between the Orthodox jurisdictions of Constantinople and Moscow that boils down to petty political squabbles, not doctrinal issues. On the other hand, in the Catholic Church there is outward unity, yet within the Church heresy is allowed to roam free in the pews and even the pulpits of Catholic parishes throughout the world. In neither situation does true unity exist.
Pope Leo is part of a generation of Catholics that took the Western emphasis of unity over truth to a harmful extreme. For Catholics who came of age during the 1960's and 1970's, unity in appearance became the driving force behind everything while truth was thrown into a back closet. We can see this in the overemphasis on the ecumenical and interreligious dialogue movements. Too often Catholic leaders have been willing to jettison important and uniquely Catholic truths to achieve "unity" with non-Catholics, so it follows that these same leaders don't consider these truths essential to intra-Catholic unity. My fear is that Pope Leo too labors under this false view and so will deemphasize the truth when it comes to uniting modern Catholic factions.
The reality is that unity between a Fr. James Martin and a Cardinal Burke is not possible without repentance on the part of Fr. Martin and those aligned with him. Those who teach error must repent for their rejection of Catholic doctrine on topics such as human sexuality and the sacredness of marriage between one man and one woman for life. The progressive camp must also come to a recognition of the real purpose of the Liturgy in general and the Mass in particular: only through the Eucharist is true and lasting unity achieved. And in some cases, progressive Catholics need to recognize that there is only one truth and that it is not relative. No matter the good intentions and hard work of the Holy Father, until there is an acceptance of basic Catholic doctrine by all parties, unity will not happen.
But what if the wolves in shepherd's clothing do not repent ? What is the path to unity then ? Sadly, it means bringing back an ancient and harsh medicine little used today: excommunication. It might seem at first look that excommunication is the opposite of unity; after all, it's a declaration that a person is no longer in communion-in unity-with the Body of Christ. Yet excommunication's purpose is not to banish a person permanently to the nether regions, but instead to make clear his need for repentance-and also to serve as a warning to all who follow the excommunicant into error. The hope and prayer is that if, God forbid, someone needed to be excommunicated, then that action would lead not only to his reconciliation with the Church, but also unity with all those who were led astray by him.
As I already noted, Leo's desire for internal Catholic unity is a noble goal, and it's one that all Catholics should work toward. But a goal-any goal-can be likened to preparing a dish for dinner: unless one knows the proper ingredients, it is doomed to failure. And a key ingredient of unity, the one that only follows charity in importance, is truth. Until all parties agree on what that is, we have as little chance of being united as did Pontius Pilate and Jesus.
Pray for the Holy Father and his efforts for unity, and pray for those within the Church who reject Catholic truth to come to repentance so that Pope Leo's efforts are rewarded with success.
This article was originally published on Crisis Magazine.
Eric Sammons is the editor-in-chief of Crisis Magazine. His most recent books are Moral Money: The Case for Bitcoin and the science fiction novel Shard of Eden.