Inside The Vatican
Inside The Vatican
America Media
What’s on Pope Leo’s desk this fall
47 minutes Posted Sep 11, 2026 at 4:00 am.
Intro
Pope Leo celebrates his 71st birthday
A review of Pope Leo's first year
Pope Leo's effect on geopolitics
Pope Leo assembles a diverse new team
Leo's focus on peace, poverty and A.I.
Pope Leo is in no rush
The pope's preferences for bishops
Plans for filling bishop vacancies
Marko Rupnik trial updates
A new attitude on Vatican finances
Outro
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47:47
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Show notes
In this week’s episode of “Inside the Vatican,” Gerry and Colleen take the opportunity of Pope Leo’s 71st birthday on Monday, Sept. 14, to look back at what he has accomplished thus far in his papacy and what major items remain on his desk for the fall, including trips to France and Latin America, a series of high-profile appointments and the ongoing trials of Marko Rupnik and Angelo Becciu.
The hosts also announce the launch of the newest America newsletter, Vatican Notebook! Subscribe here.
Chapters:
Links:
How do popes celebrate their birthdays? Pizza, parties and puppies (from 2025)
Is Pope Leo ‘Americanizing’ Vatican fundraising?
Pope Leo: Catholics cannot be ‘unengaged spectators’ amid ‘injustice, discrimination and violence’
Pope Leo’s visit to France likely to attract a million people
Peruvian city to unveil world’s tallest statue of Pope Leo for trip to South America
A long-awaited reckoning: A timeline of the Father Marko Rupnik case
Subscribe to Vatican Notebook
Follow Gerry on X: @gerryorome 
Follow Colleen on Instagram: @colleendulle 
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