Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle Appointed Dean of the College of Cardinals: Catholic LGBTQ Activists See Sign of Hope

In the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV approved the election of 69-year-old Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as the new Dean of the College of Cardinals. The appointment followed a vote by the cardinal-bishops, with Tagle succeeding 92-year-old Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.

The Dean of the College of Cardinals is regarded as one of the most prominent figures in the Roman Catholic Church during papal transitions. The dean presides over pre-conclave meetings, celebrates the funeral mass for a deceased pope, and—since Tagle is under 80 years old—would oversee the election of a new pontiff in the Sistine Chapel if a conclave were called. Historically, holding this office often positions a prelate as a notable candidate for the papacy, as occurred in 2005 with Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.

According to the American Catholic LGBTQ advocacy organisation New Ways Ministry, the pontiff’s approval sparked optimism among LGBTQ+ faithful. Cardinal Tagle, formerly the Archbishop of Manila and currently head of the Vatican’s evangelisation office, is widely recognised for supporting a more welcoming and compassionate pastoral approach. In 2015, he publicly remarked that the Catholic Church needed to learn from the damage it had inflicted on marginalised groups, including gay and lesbian people. In 2018, advocates campaigning to remove the characterisation of homosexual acts as “intrinsically disordered” from the Catechism cited his calls for reforming the Church’s language.

Human rights advocates view the appointment as a signal of the Vatican’s willingness to maintain the path of pastoral dialogue initiated by Pope Francis. At the same time, conservative church circles emphasise adherence to Catholic doctrine, cautioning against interpreting administrative and governance appointments as indications of doctrinal shifts regarding sexual ethics.

Earlier, in April 2026, Urania reported on Pope Leo XIV’s position, when he stated that the Holy See does not intend to expand the practice of blessings for same-sex couples beyond the parameters set by the 2023 declaration Fiducia supplicans.