During the solemn service on the occasion of his enthronement, Pope Leo XIV said that he would remain faithful to church teaching, while encouraging the Church to face the challenges of the modern world, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
Before the crowd gathered in "St. Peter" Square, he stressed that while the Church with its 1.4 billion believers must remain faithful to its traditions, this should not turn it into a closed and isolated institution. According to him, its future should not include religious propaganda or power struggles.
Following the line of his predecessor Pope Francis, Leo XIV sharply criticized the global economy, accusing it of "exploiting natural resources and excluding the poorest from society".
He also expressed concern about the excessive centralization of power in the papal institution and promised to lead the Church "without succumbing to the temptation to rule as an autocrat".