Francisco Robles Ortega

Cardinal Robles Ortega opposes abortion, which he has called a 'total and absolute tragedy'. In October 2021, however, he wrote on Twitter that people with same-sex attraction 'have the right for the law to protect their union', while rejecting its equation with marriage, a stance some Catholic outlets described as departing from Church teaching. He has also urged an end to the stigmatisation of women who have had abortions.

Cardinal Robles Ortega has made no significant public statement on the traditional Latin Mass or Traditionis Custodes. In April 2021 he urged Catholics to return to in-person Sunday Mass rather than follow it on television or social media, stressing community participation in the Eucharist.

Cardinal Robles Ortega has spoken on poverty and urged Mexico's political parties to keep drug traffickers out of their ranks. He has also opposed constitutional reforms he saw as promoting secularism in schools and defended the family as 'the basis of society'. He has made no significant public statements on migration.

Created a cardinal by Benedict XVI in 2007, Robles Ortega led the Mexican bishops' conference from 2012 and sits on the Dicastery for Evangelization. He has not criticised Pope Francis, and his 2021 remarks on civil protection for same-sex couples echoed views Francis had expressed, but he has not been a prominent promoter of the pontificate's reforms.

No notable public statements or initiatives by Cardinal Robles Ortega on interreligious or ecumenical dialogue have been found; his record in this area is not well documented.

Cardinal Robles Ortega uses social media, including Twitter, to comment on current issues, and issues regular pastoral messages to the faithful of Guadalajara in a direct, accessible tone.