(LifeSiteNews) — In a public commentary on Thursday, Father James Martin, S.J., said that Pope Leo XIV’s recent remarks on homosexuality mean that Catholic doctrine on sexual morality could be changed.
Martin, writing in response to Leo’s interview with Crux Now correspondent Elise Ann Allen, said the new Pontiff was “100% correct” that it was “a matter of changing ‘attitudes.’”
A bit more on the Pope Leo XIV’s thoughtful response to the questions from @eliseannallen on LGBTQ matters, in preparation for her new biography “Leon XIV.”
The Holy Father is 100% correct when he says that before anything else, it’s a matter of changing “attitudes.” One of… pic.twitter.com/IWALJcehID
— James Martin, SJ (@JamesMartinSJ) September 18, 2025
“No amount of argumentation or debate, no matter how well reasoned or informed, can substitute for what Pope Francis called a ‘culture of encounter,’” Martin wrote.
The Jesuit added that once Catholics begin seeing LGBT-identifying people as family or friends, resistance to doctrinal change collapses.
“Nothing changes a person’s attitude to LGBTQ issues faster than their child coming out to them,” he said, recalling dozens of such cases.
He also argued that bishops and priests have quietly changed their views after hearing relatives “come out” – speaking of this in terms of a “conversion experience,” and implying that those who disagree do not “see LGBTQ people as human beings,” but rather “as a stereotype, a category or an ideology.”
Martin also cited the Protestant academic Walter Brueggemann in support of setting aside reason and argumentation in favour of “stories” and experiences. He closed his remarks by urging Catholics to pray “for a change in attitude” within the Church.
What Leo XIV said
When discussing his approach to LGBT issues in the interview, Leo said:
People want the Church doctrine to change, want attitudes to change. I think we have to change attitudes before we even think about changing what the Church says about any given question.
Instead of stating that the Church’s teaching could not change, he only said he thought it would remain the same:
I find it highly unlikely, certainly in the near future, that the Church’s doctrine in terms of what the Church teaches about sexuality, what the Church teaches about marriage, [will change].
… I think that the Church’s teaching will continue as it is, and that’s what I have to say about that for right now.
Leo made similar comments about the ordination of women to the diaconate:
I, at the moment, don’t have an intention of changing the teaching of the Church on the topic.
While some read these words as affirming tradition, his repeated hints at possible change cast doubt on the unchanging nature of Catholic teaching on faith and morals.
By contrast, the First Vatican Council solemnly condemned the idea that dogmas proposed by the Church could come to be understood in a different sense:
If anyone says that it is possible that at some time, given the advancement of knowledge, a sense may be assigned to the dogmas propounded by the Church which is different from that which the Church has understood and understands: let him be anathema.
LifeSiteNews’ John-Henry Westen suggested that Leo’s words represented “a very clear invitation and instruction” for LGBT Catholics to work and prepare the ground for doctrinal change.
In applauding Leo’s remarks, Martin confirmed his support of this roadmap for change.
