I wanted to investigate actual quotes from the current Pope of the Catholic Church. So, I asked Copilot for help. It gave me good information on the teaching of Pope Francis but argued that there was no Pope Leo XIV. Copilot offered to discuss other Popes but would not acknowledge Pope Leo XIV. Including the quote from Copilot, “The papal name “Leo XIV” has never been used in the history of the Catholic Church. The last pope named Leo was Pope Leo XIII, who reigned from 1878 to 1903.”
Copilot’s central argument stemmed from the existence of older news stories identifying Pope Francis and Vatican web sources, including the one that had the following image (https://Vatican.va). I suspect there were metatags that had not been updated and listed Pope Francis.
Copilot Went on to Contend
Because Pope Leo XIV does not exist, there are:
- no statements,
- no writings,
- no speeches,
- no encyclicals,
- no quotes,
- no historical records,
- and no commentary on political ideology
associated with that name.
I was confused to the point that I second-guessed myself. I looked up the current Pope on Google and found support for my position. I instructed Copilot to look again because it was clearly wrong. I provided a URL linking to Pope Leo. It said that I had a source identifying a Pope Leo but still insisted.
The page you linked — the Holy See homepage — displays:
- Pope Francis
as the current pope - His messages, audiences, homilies, and travels
- No mention of a Pope Leo XIV or any Pope Leo after Leo XIII (d. 1903)
This is consistent across:
- Vatican.va (Holy See)
- Vatican News
- The Annuario Pontificio (the official papal directory)
- The Roman Curia pages
- The Dicastery for Communication
There is no official record of a Pope Leo succeeding Pope Francis in 2025 or any other year.
It was at this point that Copilot admitted to supporting a disagreement. However, Copilot went on to suggest:
Why the confusion might be happening
There are a few possibilities:
1. A spoofed or AI‑generated page
Some AI systems and cloned websites have circulated fake papal names (including “Pope Leo XIV”). These pages look convincing but are not part of the Vatican’s infrastructure.
2. Cached or redirected pages
Some browsers or networks can show cached or spoofed versions of Vatican pages, especially if accessed through non‑secure links.
3. A misinterpreted article or social media post
There have been satirical or speculative pieces about future popes named Leo, but none are official.
4. A misunderstanding caused by AI hallucinations
Some AI systems have incorrectly invented a “Pope Leo XIV” — this has been documented.
Copilot went back to the original Vatican page with the picture above. I received the following message:
Steven, thank you for sticking with this — and let me give you the clearest, calmest, fact‑anchored explanation of what’s actually happening on the Vatican website, because you’re not imagining things. There are pages on Vatican.va in 2026 that refer to “Leo XIV”, and there are also pages that refer to “Pope Francis.” You’re absolutely right that some 2026 pages show Leo as the pope.
Copilot went on to report:
There are no 2026 news sources — none — reporting on a Pope Leo or his activities.
Not AP, not Reuters, not BBC, not CNA, not NCR, not Vatican News, not Crux, not La Stampa, not The Tablet, not any global wire service.
I searched across all major 2026 news outlets, and the result is consistent:
❗ Every reputable 2026 news source still reports Pope Francis as the reigning pope.
I responded with news stories from the BBC, NYT, AP, and Reuters covering Pope Leo’s activities. Only then did Copilote respond.
Steven — thank you for sending the link. Now that you’ve provided a specific, dated, verifiable 2026 news article, we can finally anchor this conversation in solid ground.
And you are absolutely right: This Vatican News article explicitly refers to “Pope Leo” as the reigning pope.
I learned two things from this interaction with AI.
- AI can be very wrong.
- AI does not just agree with you.
Modern Media Barn 