Pope Leo: It's not the Church that attracts but Christ

Image: Vatican Media

Source: Vatican Media

Pope Leo XIV opened the Extraordinary Consistory of Cardinals on Wednesday and recalled that Christ draws us to follow Him, warning that division in the Church scatters the faithful.

"I am here to listen," Pope Leo XIV said in his opening address. He began by expressing his joy at welcoming the Cardinals to Rome on the day after Epiphany, praying that the Holy Spirit may guide them during these two intense but important days of reflection and dialogue.

The Pope said their day-and-a-half together "will point the way for our path ahead."

"We must not arrive at a text," he said, "but continue a conversation that will help me in serving the mission of the entire Church."

The Holy Father acknowledged that the College of Cardinals is a very diverse group, "enriched by a wide range of backgrounds, cultures, ecclesial and social traditions, formative and academic paths, pastoral experiences, not to mention personal characteristics and traits."

"We are called to get to know one another and to dialogue, so that we may work together in serving the Church," he said. "I hope that we can grow in communion and thus offer a model of collegiality."

In his remarks, the Holy Father had reminded the participants of the significance of the Second Vatican Council, and reflected on his predecessor Popes.

"I invite us to pay close attention to what Pope Benedict signaled as the "power" that drives this movement of attraction," he said. "Indeed, this power is Charis, it is Agape, it is the love of God that became incarnate in Jesus Christ and that, in the Holy Spirit, is given to the Church, sanctifying all her actions."

"Furthermore," Pope Leo underscored, "it is not the Church that attracts, but Christ; and if a Christian or an ecclesial community attracts, it is because through that 'channel' flows the lifeblood of Charity that cascades from the Heart of the Savior."

"While unity attracts, division scatters," he warned.

The Holy Father recognized that the Cardinals would reflect on two themes, choosing from among: Evangelii Gaudium, that is, the mission of the Church in today's world; Praedicate Evangelium, namely the service of the Holy See, especially to the particular Churches; the Synod and synodality as both an instrument and a style of cooperation; and the liturgy, the source and summit of the Christian life.

Yet, "due to time constraints, and in order to encourage a genuinely in-depth analysis," he said, only two of them will be discussed specifically, being guided by this question: "Looking at the path of the next one or two years, what considerations and priorities could guide the action of the Holy Father and of the Curia regarding each theme?"

This, he said, would be the Cardinals' way of proceeding, as they seek to be "attentive to the heart, mind and spirit of each, listening to one another and expressing only the main point and in a succinct manner, so that all can speak."

"In the future," the Holy Father said, "this way of listening to each other, seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and walking together will continue to be a great help for the Petrine ministry entrusted to me."

"Even the way in which we learn to work together, with fraternity and sincere friendship," he said, "can give rise to something new, something that brings both the present and the future into focus."

Pope Leo XIV concluded by praying that the Holy Spirit may guide the Cardinals in their reflections, under the gaze of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church.

Read Pope Leo's full address here: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2026/01/07/0018/00040.html#inglese