(LifeSiteNews) — On this episode of Faith and Reason, Catholic political activist and former publisher and editor of Crisis Magazine Deal Hudson joins John-Henry Westen and Deacon Keith Fournier once again to discuss Pope Leo XIV’s re-affirming of Catholic teaching on marriage and family. The trio also discusses the pontiff’s controversial bishops’ appointments, the election of Catholic Karol Nowrocki as Poland’s next president, and more.

The panel opened the episode by looking at Pope Leo XIV’s most recent Sunday homily for a Mass celebrating a Jubilee event for “Families, Children, Grandparents and the Elderly.” In his sermon, Leo praised marriage and the family.

Hudson emphasized how Leo seemed to indirectly denounce abortion while also praising charity.

“(Pope Leo XIV) said people are using the principle of human kindness, which we could call love or friendship, and they are using it to do evil. They are using it to abort. He didn’t say abort, but that’s clearly what he (meant),” Hudson said. “He put his finger on something that only someone well-trained in moral philosophy and theology would do. And I think that’s a real sign of hope for all of us.”

READ: Pope Leo XIV begins month of Sacred Heart by praising marriage and family

Deacon Keith echoed those sentiments, noting that the pontiff’s homily reminded him of the words of Pope John Paul II and Sacred Scripture.

“(The homily) was just wonderful. He spoke to families, children, grandparents, and the elderly, and it was so filled with hope and clear teaching on the sanctity of marriage and family and conjugal love and the importance of parents… It was so solid, and it was so (uplifting),” he said.

Deacon Keith continued: “It really seemed like I was listening to John Paul II, whose apostolic exhortation on the role of the Christian family in the modern world is still such a treasure.” Leo “seemed to be speaking right out of that beautiful tradition of the Church and the teaching of the … 2,000 years of teaching on the Christian family.”

Later in their discussion, the panel examined remarks Leo made about cohabitation and marriage during a recent seminar organized by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life. His comments appeared to correct previous statements made by Pope Francis about how cohabitation was “real marriage.”

Pope Leo XIV had described sacramental marriage as “not an ideal but the canon of true love between man and woman, total, faithful, fruitful love.”

READ: Pope Leo XIV corrects the Francis record on cohabitation

John-Henry praised Pope Leo’s for his clarity, emphasizing that his words were a stark contrast from the previous pontificate.

“We are getting a healing, a clarity of doctrine after a desert. And so let’s hope and pray that this continues as we continue to watch the unfolding clarity of teaching,” he added.

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