Pope Leo XIV urges Roman Rota judges to unite justice and charity, upholding truth with rigor yet compassion in Church law.
Newsroom (26/01/2026 Gaudium Press ) In a solemn address inaugurating the new judicial year of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota on Monday, Pope Leo XIV called upon Church judges to safeguard the truth “with rigor but without rigidity” and to practice charity “without omission.” The Pontiff’s remarks, delivered in the Vatican before prelate auditors and officials of the tribunal, offered a profound meditation on the unity between justice and divine love at the heart of Christian law.
The Roman Rota serves as the appellate court of the Apostolic See, upholding rights within the Church and guiding global jurisprudence through its decisions. It also adjudicates matters concerning the non-consummation of marriage, dispensations, and the nullity of sacred ordination — a role that requires its judges to navigate both legal precision and pastoral care. Its members, drawn from different parts of the world, are appointed by the Pope for their doctrinal soundness and judicial experience.
Pope Leo XIV began his address by thanking the tribunal’s members for what he called their “precious service to the universal judicial function that belongs to the Pope.” Quoting from the Epistle to the Ephesians, he reminded them that their mission embodies “Veritatem facientes in caritate” — “truth in love.” His appreciation extended to all Church tribunals, whose daily efforts reflect the Church’s commitment to justice rooted in faith and compassion.
Drawing on a longstanding papal tradition, Pope Leo revisited a central theme emphasized by his predecessors from Pope Pius XII through Pope Francis: the intrinsic bond between truth and justice. This year, he deepened that reflection by asserting that truth and charity are “not two opposing principles, nor values to be balanced according to pragmatic criteria,” but rather “two dimensions intrinsically united” in God Himself, who is both “Love and Truth.”
Acknowledging the challenges faced by Church judges, the Pope underscored the need for “constant and careful critical discernment.” He warned against two extremes that can distort ecclesial justice: one, an excessive empathy that leads to “dangerous relativization of the truth”; the other, a rigid adherence to law devoid of mercy. “A misguided compassion,” he said, “risks obscuring the necessary dimension of truth,” whereas a “cold and detached affirmation of the truth” neglects respect and mercy.
Pope Leo framed this delicate balance through the example of St. Paul, who urged Christians to “live the truth in love.” This scriptural counsel, the Pope explained, is not about mere conformity to doctrinal correctness but about an active engagement with truth “that illuminates the whole of one’s actions,” driven by charity, “the great motivating force that leads to the practice of true justice.”
Turning to the judicial process itself, he dismissed the notion that it represents conflicting interests. Instead, he described it as “the indispensable instrument for discerning truth and justice in a given case.” The Pope emphasized the importance of procedural rigor, warning that failure to adhere to fundamental principles “constitutes a serious injury to the juridical dimension of ecclesial communion.” He particularly noted the need for care in the application of the shorter process for matrimonial nullity cases before diocesan bishops, reminding canonists that only the process itself can confirm the presence or absence of nullity.
Pope Leo further called for ongoing academic seriousness and doctrinal fidelity in the study and application of canonical matrimonial law. Scientific precision, coupled with faithfulness to the Church’s Magisterium, he said, remains essential for upholding justice that reflects the truth of the Gospel.
Concluding his address, the Holy Father entrusted the work of the Roman Rota to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Speculum iustitiae — “Mirror of Justice” — whom he called the “perfect model of truth in charity.” In that invocation, Pope Leo XIV encapsulated his message: that justice and mercy, far from standing in opposition, find their truest harmony in the divine mystery of love itself.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Vatican News
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