The best way to describe him is as the anti-polarization pope. His biggest issues are peace and unity. He knows he’s operating in a context where very few world leaders are talking that way. It’s not a collaborative world. He’s looking at a polarized landscape and responding to it.

A piece of a Dallas church was blessed by Pope Leo XIV in Turkey this weekend. The newest leader of the Catholic Church blessed the foundation stone of St. Augustine's in Pleasant Grove while greeting a group of priests in Istanbul on Nov.

Pope Leo revealed on Tuesday that at the moment of his election as leader of the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church, he turned to God with a simple message: "You're in charge and you lead the way".

Pope Leo XIV, like his two immediate predecessors, visited the so-called Blue Mosque in Turkey's capital; he spent about 20 minutes inside but did not appear to pause for prayer as Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis had done.

This was not a normal Sunday for churchgoers in Pleasant Grove. They learned that Friday, one of the foundation bricks for their new church, was blessed by Pope Leo XIV.

The Catholic Church is more than 2,000 years old. Declaring war on it is hardly civilized or politically smart. Trump has three years left in office. The Catholic Church will survive condemnation by those in power; it’s hardly the first time this has occurred in its long and storied history.

Pope Leo XIV's first foreign trip evidenced profound echoes of his predecessor, Pope Francis. Still, we are also starting to see points of difference emerge as well. Leo is not Francis 2.0. Leo is Leo.