Today is the one-month anniversary of Pope Francis’ death. A lot has happened since; the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first American to lead the Church, political spats between right-wing MAGA Catholics and the Vatican, and plentiful accusations that this Pope is even more “woke” than his predecessor…all less than two-weeks into the job. To unpack it all, I speak to Christopher White, the Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, and a contributor to NBC News.

“I think (Pope) Leo understands quite well just how divided the U.S. church is because of his own family. I mean, his own brother is very much a MAGA Catholic.” - Christopher White

Chris brings a wealth of knowledge to the pod. He’s been reporting from inside the Vatican for years and has a lot of insight into the schism that’s been happening inside American Catholicism. We talk about JD Vance, Pope Leo’s very chatty brothers (!), and what to make of the Pope’s pointed criticism of the ongoing dreadful humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Fun fact: Chris is also my Broadway sensei, and gives us his Tony predictions at the end of the pod. You can listen to our full conversation here. Let me know what you think in the comments or drop me an email.

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