Pope Leo XIV has met privately with two prominent sociologists whose research has focused on communities devoted to the Tridentine Mass.
The Holy See Press Office confirmed that the Pope received Professors Stephen Bullivant and Stephen Cranney in a private audience on March 5, though no official details were released about the content of the meeting. Both academics have become well known in recent years for their sociological research into communities devoted to the Tridentine Mass.
Bullivant, a British scholar of religion who himself attends the Latin Mass, and Cranney, an American sociologist, have been working on a major study of Catholics who frequent the traditional liturgy in the United States. Their forthcoming book, Trads: Latin Mass Catholics in the United States, is scheduled for publication in November 2026 and is expected to be one of the most comprehensive sociological examinations of the movement to date.
