Pope Leo XIV warns Rome students against radical readings of the faith
Leo said false teachers encourage believers to radicalize parts of the teaching they have received. He spoke at a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica opening the academic year for more than 30,000 students at Rome's pontifical universities
Pope Leo XIV told students at Rome's pontifical universities to avoid one-sided and radical interpretations of the faith, speaking at the Mass opening the academic year in St. Peter's Basilica on October 8, 2026. In his homily, the pope said reason and critical thinking are tools in the service of the faith and the Church's mission.
"In every age, there is no shortage of false teachers who direct the religious feeling of not a few believers toward their own interests, encouraging them to radicalize some aspect of the teaching they have received, at the expense of the whole, which is Christ and his Gospel," Leo said. He was addressing more than 30,000 students from 22 pontifical academic institutions in Rome, who are called to deepen their study of theology and other disciplines.
Formation as service to faith and truth
The pope urged the students to see their formation as a "service to faith and to truth," and said study should go together with a commitment to social realities and care for those who have the least. He also recalled the need to be open to those who do not have the same educational opportunities, evoking the image of the importunate friend who knocks at the door at night.
Leo also stressed the need "to remember" rather than simply pile up data as an algorithm would, drawing instead on lived experience that enriches understanding of the faith. "Routine, ambitions, rivalries and other negative factors can, over time, distract our attention and energy, leaving us exhausted and sad," he said.
Intercultural dialogue in the classroom
The pope encouraged the students to build friendships with classmates of other nationalities, saying that "the whole world is present in your classrooms." He asked them to share their experiences of faith and to pray together, fostering dialogue and cooperation across cultural boundaries.
He closed his homily with a warning: "the further we move away from the complete reality that the Son of God assumed and inhabited with infinite love, the less we will have to say and the smaller our capacity to understand will be."
