Former Secretary General of the Peruvian Bishops' Conference - Pope neither conservative nor progressive but pragmatic

German Bishop Strotmann knows Pope Leo XIV from his time in Peru and considers him neither conservative nor  progressive but pragmatic 

The former Secretary General of the Peruvian Bishops' Conference, Bishop Norbert Strotmann (78), who comes from Germany, is tempering expectations of reform from the new Pope Leo XIV. Both know each other from Leo's time in Peru, including as Bishop of Chiclayo. "I don't expect him to respond to regional reform requests," Strotmann told the internet portal Kirche-und-LOeben.de (Tuesday) from Münster. "He has experienced – for example, with regard to the Bishops' Conference in his home country, the USA – how difficult it is to bring conservative and progressive currents together. I can't imagine him taking steps that would cost him the support of a quarter or a third of the faithful."

Rather, he could "return the Church to its core competence, to evangelization, to faith in God and Jesus Christ, and the concrete actions that follow from this for people," said Strotmann. The German religious from Hörstel, Westphalia, led the Diocese of Chosica in Peru's capital, Lima, from 1997 to 2023.

"I wouldn't classify him as right-wing or left-wing, nor as introverted or extroverted," said the bishop. "He studied mathematics before joining the Augustinians and is polyglot. I would characterize him as pragmatic." This, he said, enables him to be a problem-solver. "In discussions, I have experienced him as a good listener and a calming influence. He is not someone who inflames a simmering debate. He can be someone who holds the universal Church together."

Referring to 51 years of experience in Peru, Strotmann said: "What struck me was how blind Europe is to the world. They stew in their own juice, but live off the countries of the South as a sales market." He wished Pope Leo XIV the openness to see what the countries of the North do not see and to recognize what is wrong with the global relationship.

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