Pope Leo XIV on May 8 visited the historic Italian cities of Pompei and Naples, meeting with local citizens and clergy and celebrating Mass on the first anniversary of his election to the papacy.

The Holy Father visited the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei and met with the public before concelebrating the Eucharist in the Piazza Bartolo Longo.

Later, in Naples, he met with clergy and visited the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary.

Here is a look in photos of Pope Leo XIVʼs activities in Pompei and Naples as he marked one year as pope:

A banner greets Pope Leo XIV as he arrives in the Italian city of Pompei on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News Pope Leo XIV deboards the papal helicopter as he arrives in the Italian city of Pompei on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News Pope Leo XIV greets crowds in Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets crowds at the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV kisses a cross at the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets crowds at the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets a child at the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV concelebrates Mass in Piazza Bartolo Longo in the Italian city of Pompei, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News Pope Leo XIV concelebrates Mass in Piazza Bartolo Longo in the Italian city of Pompei on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News Pope Leo XIV prays at the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV speaks to Catholics at the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets crowds at the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV waves to crowds in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV waves to crowds in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets crowds in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV greets crowds in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV smiles while visiting the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

POMPEI, Italy — Pope Leo XIV placed his pontificate under the protection of Mary during a visit to two cities in southern Italy on Friday — the first anniversary of his election to the papacy on May 8, 2025.

Leo celebrated Mass for an estimated 20,000 people outside the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompei, whose feast day is May 8, during the day trip to Pompei and Naples.

“Exactly one year ago,” the pope said in his homily, amid thunderous applause from the assembled faithful, “when the ministry of successor of Peter was entrusted to me, it was precisely the day of the Supplication to the Virgin, this beautiful day of the Supplication to the Virgin of the Holy Rosary of Pompei! I therefore had to come here, to place my service under the protection of the Holy Virgin.”

“Having then chosen the name Leo places me in the footsteps of Leo XIII, who, among his many merits, also developed a rich magisterium on the holy rosary. Added to all of this is the recent canonization of St. Bartolo Longo, apostle of the rosary,” Leo added.

Before Mass, the pope — who flew about 150 miles from Rome to Pompei by helicopter early on May 8 — visited the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompei. Despite forecasts of rain, thousands of people filled Bartolo Longo Square from the first light of dawn.

At the shrine, the Holy Father met the “Temple of Charity,” an organization that welcomes and assists people coming from situations of hardship.

Pope Leo XIV meets the “Temple of Charity,” an organization that welcomes and assists people coming from situations of hardship, during a pastoral visit to Pompei, Italy, on May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

“Good morning, Pompei! Our Mother Mary — our mom — is always with us,” the pope said, informally greeting the faithful who were waiting for Mass. Before the Eucharistic celebration, Leo also greeted the sick and people with disabilities inside the shrine.

The pope’s homily at the outdoor Mass focused on the power of the rosary.

“The Hail Mary repeated in the holy rosary is an act of love,” he said. “Generations of believers have been shaped and safeguarded by this prayer — simple and popular, yet at the same time capable of mystical heights and a treasure chest of the most essential Christian theology.”

He also called the Hail Mary prayer “an invitation to joy.”

“It tells Mary, and in her all of us, that upon the ruins of our humanity, tried by sin and therefore always inclined to abuses, oppression, and war, the caress of God has come — the caress of mercy, which in Jesus takes on a human face. Mary thus becomes the mother of mercy.”

“When St. John Paul II proclaimed the Year of the Rosary [2002–2003], he wished to place it in a special way under the gaze of the Virgin of Pompei,” Leo XIV continued. “Times have not improved since then. The wars still being fought in so many regions of the world call for renewed commitment, not only economic and political, but also spiritual and religious.”

“Peace is born within the heart,” he added. “We cannot resign ourselves to the images of death that the news presents to us every day. St. Bartolo Longo, reflecting on Mary’s faith, called her ‘omnipotent by grace.’ Through her intercession, may an abundant outpouring of mercy come from the God of peace — touching hearts, calming resentments and fratricidal hatred, and enlightening those who bear special responsibilities of governance. No earthly power will save the world, but only the divine power of love.”

At the conclusion of Mass, Pope Leo prayed together with the faithful the traditional Supplication to Our Lady of Pompei.

The Supplication to the Queen of the Holy Rosary of Pompei was written in 1883 by St. Bartolo Longo. It is solemnly recited twice a year, at noon on May 8 and on the first Sunday of October. The supplication was composed in response to the invitation that Pope Leo XIII addressed to Catholics in his first encyclical on the rosary, Supremi Apostolatus Officio, calling for a spiritual commitment to confront the evils of society.

Pope Leo XIV prays at the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Naples, Italy, on Friday, May 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Visit to Naples

After lunch in private, Pope Leo took a helicopter about 16 miles northwest to Naples, the capital city of the Campania region of Italy, where he met with priests and religious brothers and sisters in the Naples cathedral.

During his visit to the cathedral, Leo stopped in the Chapel of the Treasure of St. Januarius, where the miracle of the liquefaction of the blood of St. Januarius had taken place on May 3. The pope kissed the relic and with it blessed those in the packed cathedral.

After some time in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, the pope addressed the Catholic community: “What I therefore ask of you is this: Listen to one another, walk together, create a symphony of charisms and ministries, and in this way find ways to move from a pastoral ministry of maintenance to a missionary pastoral ministry, capable of engaging with the concrete lives of people.”

“In a city marked by inequality, youth unemployment, school dropout rates, and fragile family situations, the proclamation of the Gospel cannot be separated from a concrete and supportive presence that involves everyone — priests, religious, and laypeople alike,” he added.

Pope Leo XIV then arrived in the popemobile to Piazza del Plebiscito, the main square of Naples, where authorities estimate about 50,000 people were present.

The pope’s address focused on peace and justice: a peace that “begins in the human heart, passes through relationships, takes root in neighborhoods and on the outskirts, and expands to embrace the entire city and the world.” A peace that needs justice “to be authentic” and that “can never be separated from charity.”

Leo also spoke about the “Neapolitan paradox:” on the one hand, the significant increase in tourism, which however struggles to correspond to “economic dynamism capable of truly involving the entire social community.” He described a city “marked by a social divide that no longer separates the center from the outskirts but is even evident within every area, with existential peripheries nested even in the heart of the historic center.” Faced with these disparities, Pope Leo XIV recalled the presence of the state as “more necessary than ever, to provide security and confidence to citizens and to take space away from organized crime.”

He then encouraged moving forward with the projects of hope taking shape in the city: “Gather your strength, work together, walk united — institutions, Church, and civil society — to connect the city, protect your children from the snares of hardship and evil, and restore to Naples its vocation to be a capital of humanity and hope.”

This story was first published in multiple parts by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

On May 8, 2025, white smoke billowed from the chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel, signaling that a new pope had been chosen. On that day, the world was introduced to Pope Leo XIV, known just hours before as Cardinal Robert Prevost, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Bishops.

One year later, Pope Leo has captured the hearts of the faithful through his papal trips, events like canonizations and special liturgies, as well as through his spoken and printed words, including an apostolic letter, and much more.

Here are 10 of the most significant events and moments of Leo XIV’s first year as pope:

The new pontiffʼs inaugural Mass

On May 18, 2025, Pope Leo XIV inaugurated his pontificate with a Mass in St. Peter’s Square calling for a united Church. Addressing approximately 150,000 attendees, he emphasized fraternal communion, servant leadership, and reconciliation, marking the official start of his ministry as the 266th successor of St. Peter.

At the Mass, concelebrated with the members of the College of Cardinals, Leo expressed his intention to “come to you as a brother, who desires to be the servant of your faith and your joy, walking with you on the path of God’s love, for he wants us all to be united in one family.”

Instagram postVisit to Pope Francis’ tomb

Less than 48 hours after his election, Pope Leo made his first visit outside of the Vatican visiting the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, located about an hour east of Rome and run by the religious of the Order of St. Augustine.

On his way back to the Vatican, the new pontiff stopped at the Basilica of St. Mary Major where he prayed before the tomb of Pope Francis and the icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary there, “Salus Populi Romani.”

Pope Leo left a white rose, which is said to have been Pope Francis’ favorite flower.

Impactful addresses to youth

Throughout his first year as pope, the Holy Father has had powerful experiences with young people. Two in particular that stand out are his addresses to roughly 1 million young adults during the Jubilee of Youth and his live talk with young people gathered at the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC).

During the Jubilee of Youth, which took place July 28–Aug. 3 and was part of the yearlong Jubilee of Hope, young adults from around the world filled the streets of Rome. Each day was filled with different opportunities and events for the young people to experience the richness of the Catholic faith.

On Aug. 2, Pope Leo was greeted by the largest crowd he had addressed during his pontificate so far for the evening vigil at Tor Vergata, an outdoor venue 10 miles east of Rome. An estimated 1 million people were in attendance. The Holy Father arrived by helicopter and then drove through the grounds on the popemobile, waving to the cheering young people before the prayer service began.

The Jubilee of Youth concluded on Aug. 3 with a Mass celebrated by Pope Leo on the 237-acre grounds of Tor Vergata, where more than a million young pilgrims had spent the night following a prayer vigil and Eucharistic adoration.

In his homily, Pope Leo invited the pilgrims to open their hearts to God and venture with him “towards eternity.”

Pope Leo XIV approaches Tor Vergata in Rome by helicopter on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025. | Credit: Vatican Media

NCYC took place in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium from Nov. 20–22. On Nov. 21, Pope Leo held a historic digital encounter with American teenagers.

During this live conversation, five teenagers asked the pope questions regarding using technology, recovering from mistakes, giving worries to Jesus, avoiding distractions, and preparing for the future of the Church. The pope gave guidance to the young crowd with words applicable to both teenagers and the universal Church.

Pope Leo XIV speaks to teenagers during a digital encounter at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis during the 2025 National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC) on Nov. 21, 2025. | Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNA Canonizations of Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis

On Sept. 7, 2025, Pope Leo canonized Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis in his first canonization ceremony before an estimated 70,000 people in St. Peter’s Square.

“Today we look to St. Pier Giorgio Frassati and St. Carlo Acutis: a young man from the early 20th century and a teenager from our own day, both in love with Jesus and ready to give everything for him,” he said during his homily.

He added: “Dear friends, Sts. Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis are an invitation to all of us, especially young people, not to squander our lives but to direct them upwards and make them masterpieces.”

TweetRelease of his first apostolic letter

Pope Leo XIV released his first apostolic letter, Dilexi Te, on Oct. 9, 2025. The document emphasizes the idea that the poor are not simply objects of charity but also evangelists who can prompt us to conversion through their example of weakness and reliance on God.

“The poor can act as silent teachers for us, making us conscious of our presumption and instilling within us a rightful spirit of humility,” Leo writes in Dilexi Te (“I Have Loved You”). “The elderly, for example, by their physical frailty, remind us of our own fragility, even as we attempt to conceal it behind our apparent prosperity and outward appearance. The poor ... remind us how uncertain and empty our seemingly safe and secure lives may be.”

The pontiff quotes his predecessor throughout the document, which was first drafted during Pope Francis' pontificate and draws heavily on the late popeʼs first apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium, on the joy of the Gospel.

First major international trip: Turkey and Lebanon

Pope Leo made his first international papal trip to Turkey and Lebanon Nov. 27–Dec. 2, 2025. The wide-ranging international visit included historic ecumenical encounters, deeply symbolic gestures of prayer, and pastoral visits to Christian communities under pressure. Pope Leo highlighted the importance of unity, peace, and fraternity, and brought encouragement to a region marked by ancient faith and present suffering.

One highlight from his time in Turkey included the commemoration of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea alongside Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople in the Turkish city of Iznik, the site of the Council of Nicaea, historically known as the birthplace of the Nicene Creed.

In Lebanon, Pope Leo became the first pope in history to visit the tomb of St. Charbel Makhlouf when he arrived at the Monastery of St. Maron in Annaya.

Pope Leo XIV reflects on the enduring message of St. Charbel Makhlouf at the hermit’s tomb at the Monastery of St. Maron, in Annaya, Lebanon, on Dec. 1, 2025. | Credit: Vatican Media An extraordinary consistory

In his opening address at an extraordinary consistory — which convened from Jan. 7–8 — Pope Leo assured the cardinals from around the world gathered at the Vatican that “I am here to listen.”

This extraordinary consistory — different from the ordinary ones, which are more limited and frequent — was scheduled to take place immediately after the Jubilee of Hope to “offer support and advice to the Holy Father in the exercise of his high and arduous responsibility of governing the Church,” according to a statement from the Holy See.

The consistory was a closed-door meeting to which no media were admitted, and cardinals were asked to keep the proceedings confidential. However, the cardinals were expected to offer the new pontiff their views on two specific topics: the Synod and synodality, and the mission of evangelization and the missionary character of the Church.

First Holy Week and Easter celebrations as pope

During Holy Week and Easter 2026, Pope Leo presided over the Church’s most solemn liturgies in Rome, beginning with Palm Sunday and continuing through the chrism Mass on Holy Thursday, the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the Good Friday Passion celebration, the Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum, the Easter Vigil at St. Peter’s Basilica, and finally Easter Sunday Mass with the “urbi et orbi” blessing from St. Peter’s Square.

This was the first time in several years that a pope participated in all the liturgies of Holy Week and Easter. Due to Pope Francis’ declining health toward the end of his papacy, he had to scale back his participation in many of these events.

Pope Leo was also the first pope since John Paul II in 1994 to carry the wooden cross to all 14 stations during the Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum on Good Friday.

Pope Leo XIV carries the cross during the Via Crucis at the Colosseum in Rome, Friday, April 3, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News Historic 11-day trip to Africa

Pope Leo spent 11 days in Africa — from April 13–23 — and visited four countries: Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea. During this trip, he traveled more than 11,000 miles on 18 separate flights. With stops in 11 cities across those countries, the Holy Father met with the youth, political leaders, prisoners, families, and many more to share the Gospel message.

Throughout his journey, he emphasized themes of peace, reconciliation, and economic justice, meeting with local leaders, clergy, and lay faithful. Large crowds gathered for outdoor Masses, reflecting the vibrancy and rapid growth of Catholicism in many African communities.

One of the highlights of the trip was Pope Leo’s visit to Annaba — ancient Hippo — in what for the Augustinian pontiff amounted to a return to the roots of his faith and vocation. Despite pouring rain, the pope walked through the ruins and, at the end of the route, laid a wreath of flowers and stopped for a moment of prayer, visibly moved.

The pope also paid a visit to the Bata penitentiary in Equatorial Guinea and told inmates that “no one is excluded from God’s love” and urged them to see that even behind bars, there remains the possibility of change, reconciliation, and hope. This prison is one of the country’s harshest, known for its difficult conditions.

Pope Leo XIV displays a crucifix while speaking to prisoners at Bata Prison, Equatorial Guinea, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Strong messaging on war and peace

The Holy Father has made peace a defining theme of his pontificate from the very beginning, opening his first public remarks with the words “Peace be with you.” That simple greeting set the tone for a broader vision — one rooted in the Gospel but directed squarely at a world marked by conflict and division.

In homilies and international addresses, he has consistently framed peace not as the absence of war but as an active, daily commitment grounded in justice, reconciliation, and respect for human dignity.

The pope has urged world leaders to reject cycles of violence and instead foster what he has called a “culture of peace.” Speaking in the context of ongoing global tensions, he has warned against the normalization of war as a tool of policy, insisting that lasting solutions can only come through dialogue and mutual understanding.

The pope has also addressed the dangers of modern warfare, including the threat of nuclear escalation. He has called for renewed international efforts toward disarmament and de-escalation, emphasizing that the destructive power of nuclear weapons demands a moral as well as political response.

Reiterating the Church’s long-standing teaching, Pope Leo has encouraged nations to pursue diplomacy over aggression, presenting dialogue not as weakness but as the strongest and most enduring path to peace.

Pope Leo XIV on Thursday underscored the enduring value of printed books in the digital age, saying reading “nourishes the mind” and offers Christians a valuable opportunity to proclaim Christ.

The pope made the remarks May 7 during an audience at the Vatican with employees of the Vatican Publishing House, or Libreria Editrice Vaticana, which was founded in 1926 and is celebrating its centenary this year.

The Holy Father said the book “is an opportunity to think,” defending the physicality of printed books in an increasingly digital culture because, he said, they remind readers of the importance of “thought, reflection, and study.”

“Reading nourishes the mind; it helps to foster a conscious and well-formed critical sense, guarding us against fundamentalism and ideological shortcuts,” Pope Leo said.

“For this reason, I urge everyone to read books, as an antidote to closed-mindedness, which is reflected in rigid attitudes and reductive views of reality,” he added.

The pope also emphasized that books offer an opportunity for encounter.

“When we hold a book in our hands, we ideally encounter its author,” he said. “But at the same time, we meet those who have read it before us, or who are reading it now or will read it in the future.”

Pope Leo noted that Pope Francis had taught Catholics “to practice the culture of encounter,” adding that “a book is a bridge to others, a source of dialogue that enriches us, a stimulus to expand our own perspective.”

For Christians in particular, the pope said, books can be “an opportunity to proclaim Christ.”

“We know well how reading a saint’s biography or a well-written spiritual reflection can touch the heart,” he said.

He also pointed to the Virgin Mary, who is often depicted in the Annunciation “intent on reading the holy Scriptures,” and to St. Anthony of Padua, who is commonly shown holding “the open Book of the Gospels, upon which the Infant Jesus stands.”

“We often see St. Augustine seated at a desk before a large book and, at times, holding a heart in his hand: truth and charity,” the pope said.

“At the school of Mary and the saints, let us nourish ourselves with the word of God, so that it may shape our way of thinking and acting,” Pope Leo added.

The pope concluded by recalling the words of St. Paul VI, who in 1976 met with employees of the Vatican Publishing House for its 50th anniversary and urged them to “look ahead, to refine ideas and plans for the future.”

“I thank you for your work, which I hope you will carry out with dedication and passion,” Pope Leo said. “And I cordially bless each of you and your loved ones.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Recruits of the Pontifical Swiss Guard took their oath of allegiance to Pope Leo XIV, solemnly pledging to serve and protect him.

The ceremony took place May 6 in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican in the presence of the pontiff, members of the Holy See Diplomatic Corps, and the family and friends of the 28 recruits.

At the high point of the ceremony, in a gesture laden with tradition, each recruit held the banner of the Pontifical Swiss Guard with his left hand, raised three fingers with his right, and recited the oath swearing to protect the pope, even at the cost of his life.

Each recruit holds the banner of the Pontifical Swiss Guard with his left hand, raises three fingers with his right, and recites the oath swearing to protect the pope, even at the cost of his life, on May 6, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

This gesture, more than just an oath of allegiance, also commemorates the 147 Swiss Guards who died defending Pope Clement VII during the Sack of Rome on May 6, 1527.

In his address after the ceremony, Leo thanked the recruits, describing their future service as a “commitment of fidelity, inspired by youthful enthusiasm and grounded in faith in God and love for the Church.”

On Thursday, the pope held a private audience with the new Swiss Guards and their families. Leo took this occasion to remind them of the beauty of their calling and described them as servants of Christ, called not only to serve the Holy See but also those most in need.

Pope Leo XIV welcomes the Swiss Guard in a ceremony for recruits on May 6, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

“More than soldiers, you are servants who, in the image of Christ, go out to meet those who need your help: not only members of the Curia or officials visiting the Vatican but also pilgrims and tourists,” the pope said. “Always remember these words of Jesus: ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these, my brothers, you did for me’ (Mt 25:40).”

Pope Leo XIV welcomes the Swiss Guard in a ceremony for recruits on May 6, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

On Thursday Pope Leo XIV met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Vatican, with the meeting coming amid tensions between the Holy See and U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has expressed his disapproval of Leoʼs public statements denouncing the U.S.-led war on Iran. The Holy Father has repeatedly called for peace amid the ongoing conflict.

According to a statement released by the U.S. Department of State, the pontiff and Rubio discussed “the situation in the Middle East and topics of mutual interest in the Western Hemisphere.”

Pope Leo XIV speaks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Vatican, Thursday, May 7, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

It also stated that their meeting “underscored the strong relationship between the United States and the Holy See and their shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity.”

The Holy See published its own statement of the meeting, which, according to Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni, lasted for 45 minutes.

Instagram post

The statement described the meeting as an encounter where “cordial discussions” took place regarding the “fostering of strong bilateral relations between the Holy See and the United States of America.”

Pope Leo XIV speaks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Vatican, Thursday, May 7, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media

This week Trump expressed his desire that Rubio tell the pope that "Iran cannot have nuclear weapons.” The president has repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that Leo wants the Middle Eastern country to develop nuclear armaments.

Leo has rejected those allegations. On May 5 at Castel Gandolfo he stated that the Church "has spoken for years against all nuclear weapons." On Wednesday, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin stated that the Holy See "has always worked, and will continue to work, on nuclear disarmament."

Parolin, who also met Rubio on May 7, also described Trumpʼs recent verbal attacks against the pope as "strange."

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said on Wednesday it would be premature to discuss sanctions against the German bishops for blessings of same-sex couples.

Parolin, however, did not rule out an intervention by the Holy See but expressed hope that it would be avoided.

“It is premature now to speak of sanctions. Let us hope we never have to get to sanctions, and that problems can be resolved peacefully, as they should be in the Church,” Parolin told reporters on the sidelines at a book launch at the Patristic Institute in Rome on Wednesday.

Several members of the German Bishops' Conference, citing the Vatican declaration Fiducia Supplicans, have formalized blessings for same-sex couples in their dioceses in Germany. Recently, a 2024 letter was circulated from the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith prohibiting this practice.

Pope Leo XIV has also weighed in on the issue, recently stating that the Holy See does not agree with the German bishops with the “formalized blessing of couples" beyond the allowances of Fiducia Supplicans.

Rubio to meet with Pope Leo

Parolin also weighed in on the May 7 meeting scheduled between Leo and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and U.S. President Donald Trumpʼs recent criticisms of the pope. Parolin said the United States remains an interlocutor with the Holy See and described the latest verbal attacks against Leo as “strange.”

“We will listen to [Rubio]. We will listen to him. The initiative came from [the Trump administration]. I imagine we will talk about everything that has happened in recent days; we cannot avoid touching on these issues,” Parolin said.

Leo recently spoke to journalists at Castel Gandolfo and rejected Trumpʼs claim that the Church supports nuclear weapons. Parolin echoed those sentiments on Thursday, stating that the “Holy See has always worked, and continues to work, precisely on nuclear disarmament.”

The Vatican’s General Secretariat of the Synod published Tuesday the testimonies of two men in civil marriages with other men who describe from personal experience the tensions and wounds that have marked their life of faith within the Church.

It is the first time a Vatican text has given voice to this group in such detail. One testimony is from a man in Portugal who said he suffered a deep wound when a spiritual director suggested he could have been married to a woman to “find peace” and “use my gifts,” minimizing the affective dimension of marriage.

The man said the suggestion was painful because “it was a suggestion to harm a woman by robbing her of the chance to be completely loved and desired, all to fulfill a social expectation.” From that point, he said, he began excluding his relationship and affective life from his prayer.

The Synod also published the testimony of a U.S. Catholic man in a civil marriage with another man, an immigrant, and active in parish life. “My sexuality isn’t a perversion, disorder, or cross; it’s a gift from God,” he wrote. “I have a happy, healthy marriage and am flourishing as an openly gay Catholic.”

Both testimonies are written in English and are published on the Synod website as annexes to the final report of Study Group 9, titled “Theological Criteria and Synodal Methodologies for Shared Discernment of Emerging Doctrinal, Pastoral, and Ethical Issues.”

The U.S. testimony recalls the author’s experience with Courage, a Catholic apostolate that supports people with same-sex attraction who seek to live chastely according to Church teaching. Pope Leo XIV received members of Courage at the Vatican on Feb. 6.

The man wrote that he went to the group at the suggestion of a conversion therapist he had met to deal with his “condition.” He added: “I tried in vain to date a Catholic woman, but our relationship failed when my family faced a crisis. The time had come to be honest with myself, God, and others.”

The 32-page report, published first in Italian and presented in English as a working translation, is not a definitive doctrinal proposal. Rather, it outlines a methodological shift and will now be presented to Pope Leo XIV for study.

Drawing from the testimonies, the Synod study group says the first account describes “the devastating effects of reparative therapies aimed at recovering heterosexuality” and “contradictory advice” such as suggestions to marry a woman in order to “find peace.”

The report proposes a new approach based on listening and dialogue for addressing “emerging doctrinal, pastoral, and ethical issues,” including the experience of “people of faith with same-sex attractions.”

The text is rooted in what it calls the “principle of pastorality,” which stresses that Christian proclamation must take account of concrete persons and their lived experience. It proposes a change in approach to some of the most delicate questions in the life of the Church.

The report does not seek to offer total solutions but to open a path of discernment. Instead of speaking of “controversial” issues, as the subject of the report was originally announced, it proposes calling them “emerging” issues, understood as experiences that prompt the Church to rethink how to live and transmit the Gospel in diverse contexts.

The document explicitly recognizes the difficulty of harmonizing doctrine and pastoral practice. It says testimonies received by the study group show “how arduous it is for individuals and Christian communities to reconcile ‘doctrinal firmness’ with ‘pastoral welcome.’” It adds that polarized positions often result in “profound suffering, personal lacerations, and experiences of marginalization or ‘double lives’” for believers with same-sex attraction.

In this context, the report proposes a method based on three steps within what it calls “conversation in the Spirit”: listening to ourselves, paying attention to reality, and summoning various forms of expertise.

The text says this dynamic of listening seeks to foster a synodal Church in which the people of God actively participate in discernment.

The report also stresses the importance of paying attention to those living on existential, social, and cultural “peripheries.” It cites other examples of “emerging issues,” including the rise of adult catechumens in some local Churches, which it says calls for rethinking pastoral structures.

In addition to the testimonies of two homosexual persons, Study Group 9 includes an experience of active nonviolence, as witnessed by a Serbian youth movement that helped bring about the peaceful fall of President Slobodan Milošević on Oct. 5, 2000, drawing inspiration in part from the first Christians.

The Synod also published the final report of another study group, Study Group 7, on criteria for selecting candidates for bishop.

That report says bishops should be evaluated not only for moral integrity, doctrinal orthodoxy, pastoral sensitivity, leadership ability, and capacity to administer Church goods but also for “synodal competencies.” It quotes Pope Leo XIV as saying that a bishop’s duty is “to build communion among its members and with the universal Church by fostering the variety of gifts and ministries given for its own growth and for the spread of the Gospel.”

The report also asks the dicasteries of the Roman Curia to review their procedures in a more synodal spirit and proposes regular independent evaluation of the processes for selecting bishops.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Pope Leo XIV appointed Father Michael T. Castori, SJ, as the new bishop of Honolulu on May 6. He is a member of the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits.

The pontiff accepted the resignation of Bishop Clarence R. Silva, 76, who has led the diocese since 2005.

According to a press release from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Castori was born on Oct. 21, 1960, in Sacramento, California. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 13, 1998.

Castori has earned several academic degrees, including a bachelor’s degree in classics from Harvard University in 1982, a master of divinity degree from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley in 1998, and a doctorate in Near Eastern religions from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2008.

He also received a licentiate in sacred theology from Fordham University in 2009.

He has held several teaching roles, including as an assistant professor at Santa Clara University and the Ateneo de Manila in the Philippines.

His pastoral experience includes service as chaplain to the Tongan Catholic communities in northern California and to San Quentin State Prison.

Before being appointed to Honolulu, he served as the rector of the Arrupe Jesuit Residence in Seattle.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV continued his catechesis on the documents of the Second Vatican Council at his Wednesday general audience, reflecting on the Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium and the Church as “pilgrim in history towards the heavenly homeland.”

Speaking May 6 in St. Peter’s Square, the pope said that “the Church, in fact, journeys through this earthly history always looking towards her final destination, which is the heavenly homeland.”

“This is an essential dimension which, however, we often overlook or downplay, because we are too focused on what is immediately visible and on the more concrete dynamics of the life of the Christian community,” he said.

The pope explained that “the Church lives in history in the service of the coming of the Kingdom of God in the world.”

“She proclaims the words of this promise to all and always; she receives a pledge of it in the celebration of the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist; she puts its logic into practice and experiences it in relationships of love and service,” he said.

Leo said Lumen Gentium makes an important affirmation about the nature and mission of the Church.

“The Church is the ‘universal sacrament of salvation’ (LG, 48), that is, the sign and instrument of that fullness of life and peace promoted by God,” he said.

“This means that she does not identify perfectly with the Kingdom of God, but is its seed and beginning, for its fulfilment will be granted to humanity and the cosmos only at the end,” the pope continued.

Because of this, he said, Christians journey through history “without being either deluded or despairing,” guided by the promise of the One who will “make all things new.”

The Church, Leo said, carries out her mission between the “already” of the Kingdom’s beginning in Jesus and the “not yet” of its promised fulfillment.

“As the guardian of a hope that enlightens the path, she is also invested with the mission of speaking clearly to reject everything that mortifies life and prevents its development, and to take a position in favour of the poor, the exploited, the victims of violence and war, and all those who suffer in body and in spirit,” he said.

The pope emphasized that the Church must always point beyond herself to Christ.

“As the sign and sacrament of the Kingdom, the Church is the pilgrim people of God on earth who, drawing precisely on the final promise, reads and interprets the dynamics of history through the Gospel, denouncing evil in all its forms and proclaiming, in word and deed, the salvation that Christ wishes to bring about for all humanity and His Kingdom of justice, love and peace,” he said.

“The Church, therefore, does not proclaim herself; on the contrary, everything within her must point to salvation in Christ,” he added.

From this perspective, Leo said, the Church must recognize “humbly the human fragility and transience of her own institutions,” which, while at the service of God’s kingdom, “bear the fleeting image of this world.”

“No ecclesial institution can be treated as absolute; indeed, since they exist within history and time, they are called to continual conversion, to the renewal of forms and the reform of structures, to the continual regeneration of relationships, so that they may truly fulfil their mission,” the pope said.

Leo also reflected on the communion between Christians still carrying out their earthly mission and those who have already completed their earthly lives and are in purification or beatitude.

He said Lumen Gentium affirms that all Christians form “a single Church” and that there is “communion and sharing of spiritual goods” founded on believers’ union with Christ.

By praying for the dead and following the example of those who lived as disciples of Jesus, the pope said, Christians are strengthened on their own journey.

“Marked by the one Spirit and united in the one liturgy, together with those who have gone before us in faith, we praise and give glory to the Most Holy Trinity,” he said.

The pope concluded: “Let us be grateful to the Council Fathers for reminding us of this most important and beautiful aspect of being Christian, and may we strive to cultivate it in our lives.”

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy — Pope Leo XIV said violence must always be a last resort and rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that he supports Iran having a nuclear weapon.

The American president has repeatedly said he doesn’t want a pope who thinks Iran should have a nuclear weapon, even though the pope has never endorsed that view and has consistently spoken against nuclear arms.

Pope Leo XIV said May 5: “I have already spoken from the very first moment of being elected, and now we are close to the anniversary. I said, ‘Peace be with you,’ and the Church’s mission is to preach the Gospel, to preach peace. If someone wants to criticize me for proclaiming the Gospel, let them do so truthfully.”

“The Church has spoken for years against all nuclear weapons, so there is no doubt there. And so I simply hope to be listened to for the value of God’s words,” Leo said to the press outside the papal villa of Castel Gandolfo before returning to Rome after a daylong stay there, two days before a scheduled meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump said May 4 on the "The Hugh Hewitt Show": “The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon. I don’t think that’s very good. I think he’s endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people, but I guess if it’s up to the pope, he thinks it’s just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”

“I donʼt want a pope who thinks itʼs OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on April 12.

Leo has never said that Iran should have nuclear weapons, and he has spoken specifically against nuclear weapons:

• “May the nuclear threat never again dictate the future of humanity," he said in a March 5 video message.
• In June 2025, he called for a world free from nuclear threat in appealing for peace between Iran and Israel.

Pope Leo answered an EWTN reporter’s question about whether his statement that “God does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war” applies to all who take up arms, even in self-defense, or only to unjust aggressors.

“Self-defense has traditionally always been allowed by the Church,” Pope Leo XIV said.

“To talk about just war today, itʼs a very complex problem. You have to analyze it on many levels, but ever since the entrance into the nuclear age, the whole concept of war has to be reevaluated with terms today,” Leo said.

“I always believe that itʼs much better to enter into dialogue than to look for arms and to support the arms industry, which gains billions and billions of dollars each year, instead of sitting down at the table solving our problems and using money to solve humanitarian issues, hunger in the world, et cetera,” he said.

For a war to be justified, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, it must be waged to fight against a grave evil, the damage caused by waging the war cannot be graver than the evil it is meant to eliminate, there must be a serious prospect of success, and all alternatives to war must have already been tried. The decision to go to war must be made by a lawful authority responsible for the common good. All criteria must be met to qualify as a just war.

Meeting with Rubio

The pope’s meeting with Rubio this week follows a period of tension between the Holy See and the Trump administration. In April, Trump attacked the pontiff on social media, calling him “weak on crime and terrible for foreign policy” in response to the pontiffʼs appeals for peace amid the U.S.-Israel war on Iran. The pope told reporters he “perhaps” may comment on the meeting with Rubio afterward.

Brian Burch, U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, was asked May 5 about the state of the U.S.-Vatican relationship.

“I donʼt accept the idea that somehow thereʼs some deep rift,” Burch said. “I think nations have disagreements and I think one of the ways that you work through those is, as the Holy See says, is through fraternity and authentic dialogue. I think the secretary is coming here in that spirit, to have a frank conversation about U.S. policy, to engage in dialogue, to better understand each other and to work through — if there are differences — certainly to talk through that.”

The meeting will focus on “Middle East policy and our efforts there to bring about a more peaceful world,” Burch said, areas of “deep cooperation, shared interests, and in many ways, I think, shared goals.”

Burch said Rubioʼs visit “speaks to our deep desire to engage in exactly what the Holy See has called for: fraternity and authentic dialogue.”

The Church’s stance toward war is that it must be avoided. The Church has long held concerns about war to be a moral subject, with St. Augustine writing extensively about it in the early fifth century and popes and theologians both commenting on just war doctrine generally and speaking out about specific wars for centuries.

Popes seldom issue blanket rulings but Pope Benedict XV made clear World War I lacked moral legitimacy given its scale, civilian toll, and lack of proportionate ends. Pope John Paul II warned the Gulf War did not meet just war criteria. And the Vatican formally stated in 2003 that the invasion of Iraq failed just‑war standards.

In his Easter Sunday urbi et orbi message, Leo asked people of goodwill to search always for peace and not violence. He again asked people April 7 “to reject war, especially a war which many people have said is an unjust war, which is continuing to escalate and is not resolving anything,” the pope said. “We have a worldwide economic crisis, energy crisis, situation in the Middle East of great instability, which is only provoking more hatred throughout the world.”

Pope Leo XIV in his Easter homily called for peace throughout the world, urging Christians to carry the hope of the Resurrection into a world wounded by war, violence, and injustice.

Javier Romero and Brian Schumacher contributed to this story.

Can a religious congregation survive after its founder turns out to have been a sexual abuser and a liar who lived a double life for years? The Legionaries of Christ have spent 20 years answering that question with actions.

They were pioneers in publishing the cases of their abusive priests — an unprecedented step in consecrated life — and in submitting 80 years of a dark history to public scrutiny. Today, they are an ecclesial reference point for transparency. Now, Father Carlos Gutiérrez López, 51, the new general director elected in February, speaks with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, about the road that still lies ahead.

It is a path of expiation that began in 2006 but reached a turning point in 2019 with the publication of the “1941–2019 Report,” the first of its kind to include all cases from the congregation’s founding to the present day and throughout the world. Since then, it has been updated each year through the “Truth, Justice, and Healing” reports.

“Since we began facing this reality, although it was very painful, it also opened our eyes: There was a lot of work to do,” Gutiérrez López said. “In recent years we have been working hard to meet standards, following the documents issued by the Church, collaborating with canonical and civil authorities. We have been putting a certain order in place so we can attend to and respond to the needs of victims and provide comprehensive care in different areas.”

Father Carlos Gutiérrez López at the Legionaries of Christ headquarters in Rome. | Credit: Daniel Ibañez/EWTN News His priestly vocation, marked by the wound left by Maciel

His own vocational story was marked by the scandal that shook the congregation because of its founder, Mexican priest Marcial Maciel, who was responsible for extremely serious sexual abuse. Gutiérrez López was ordained a priest in 2009, just as the magnitude of Maciel’s crimes was coming to light: Maciel had sexually abused dozens of minors over several decades and had lived, as the Vatican confirmed in 2010, “a life devoid of scruples and genuine religious sentiment.”

“It was definitely something very strong, something that left all of us very perplexed, frightened, and also disillusioned,” he said in an interview with ACI Prensa. “And that meant for me a very deep process of reflection in which I had to ask why I was giving my life to God and also the question: Why remain here?”

Maciel died in 2008 without acknowledging his crimes or asking for forgiveness, even though a Vatican investigative commission had already revealed his criminal activity beyond any doubt.

After the scandal, Gutiérrez López explained, the figure of the founder ceased to be a reference point: “Definitely, the founder is no longer a spiritual reference point, a moral reference point for us. And for me, that reference point, I saw, had always been Our Lord Jesus Christ, whom we seek to imitate and with whom we also seek to have that personal relationship.”

Benedict XVI saw the light that was in them

Despite all the evil committed by the founder, Benedict XVI never failed to recognize in the Legionaries of Christ “a healthy community” made up of “young people who want to serve the faith with enthusiasm,” as the pontiff himself emphasized in the book-length interview with Peter Seewald “Light of the World.”

From the beginning, the Vatican established that the congregation’s review should be built around three fundamental axes: the redefinition of its charism or spirituality; the review of the exercise of authority — whose abusive control of consciences allowed Maciel to live a double life for years — and the guarantee of adequate formation for seminarians and priests. In addition, to complete the long process of purification, a constant dialogue was opened with victims inside and outside the Legion.

“The Church accompanied us throughout a whole process of renewal. We reviewed constitutions, we reviewed many of the norms we had been living in the congregation, the style of apostolate we carried out — in short, it was an entire review that lasted many years,” Gutiérrez López said.

For many Legionary seminarians and priests, the support of the Church was decisive; like a “mother,” the Church “showed the way,” he emphasized.

“Seeing how the Legion was responding, I said: Well, I also want to help the Church with my priesthood to move this congregation forward, because the congregation can also contribute and give much to the Church in evangelization. In the end, we are here to serve God Our Lord, in the Church, and in this call that he made to me. As I have gone step by step, I have felt very happy, and that has also been my experience,” he said.

First meeting with Pope Leo XIV

During the audience the Legionaries had with Pope Leo XIV in February, the pontiff returned to several key points of the deep renewal they have carried out in fidelity to the Church. For example, he emphasized to them that authority in the Church must be lived as fraternal and spiritual service, not as a form of domination.

For the Mexican priest, this is a demanding but profoundly evangelical ideal.

“Yes, I really liked that part of the audience,” Gutiérrez López said.

Pope Leo XIV with the former superior general of the Legionaries of Christ, Father John Connor. | Credit: Vatican Media

He especially highlighted the moment when the pope invited the Legionaries to approach people “with a respectful and compassionate gaze,” aware that every encounter means entering “a sacred space.”

Drawing on his own experience as a superior and as territorial director in northern Mexico and Colombia, Gutiérrez López said he has always been clear that authority is above all a service: “For my brothers, I am offering them a service. … What they share with me is something sacred, and I have to respect that sacredness,” he said.

Gutiérrez López is not naive. He knows well that many people may wonder how it is possible to separate the deplorable actions of the founder, who was responsible for so many crimes, from the charism that the Legionaries of Christ embody today.

“It is a valid question,” he said.

In this regard, he noted that it was the Church herself that “from the beginning,” when she asked the Legionaries to “review our constitutions,” placed the fundamental question before them: “What is your charism? What is the charism and the contribution that the Legion makes?”

“The charism, I believe, is something we have been discovering, and it is nothing other than forming apostles to transmit the love of Christ, to form apostles and also send them to evangelize the world and help the Church in this evangelization,” he said.

According to the congregation’s statistics, updated as of Dec. 31, 2025, the Legionaries of Christ have 1,327 members worldwide, including 52 religious with perpetual vows and 151 with temporary vows.

Despite the wounds of the past, they continue to attract vocations: Currently, 250 minor seminarians are being formed in vocational centers, reflecting the continued weight of initial formation within the congregation.

The Legionaries of Christ belong to Regnum Christi, which also includes the Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi, with 479 consecrated women in 53 communities around the world; the Lay Consecrated Men of Regnum Christi, with 47 lay consecrated men in eight communities; and lay members: 21,712 lay young people and adults older than 16 and 14,353 lay members younger than 16.

The new superior general of the Legionaries of Christ, Father Carlos Gutiérrez López, speaks with ACI Prensa in an interview. | Credit: Daniel Ibañez/EWTN News

In Regnum Christi’s educational work — 139 schools and 14 universities — 153,219 students are being educated.

The new general director explained that one of the keys to eradicating abuse from within the congregation has been swiftly applying standards for the protection of minors and vulnerable adults in the 23 countries where it is present.

“In recent years we have been very strict in applying these standards and in perfecting them so they can be lived well. In each of the countries where we are working, we have sought to have the necessary teams that can respond, made up of professionals. These are things that we priests cannot do alone. We need specialists — psychologists, lawyers, and so on — to help us truly be very serious in complying with these standards,” he said.

An engineer-priest with broad international experience

Affable and approachable, Gutiérrez López is used to moving in international settings. He studied philosophy and theology at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum as well as industrial and systems engineering at the Monterrey Institute of Technology. He also holds a master’s degree in psychology from Divine Mercy University in the United States.

He has carried out his ministry in Chile, Italy, Colombia, Venezuela, and Mexico.

“It has been a great richness to have that experience, to be in contact with different cultures, to know the needs of each country, to learn to listen, to adapt to what a society and a culture are like, to understand them in order to offer and bring them the message that leads to the Church, which is knowing Christ and living one’s faith,” he said.

“I believe that has also been personally enriching, now that my Legionary brothers have elected me to this role, so that I can respond and accompany the different territories,” he added.

Until his election as general director, he served as territorial director of northern Mexico, a region deeply wounded by violence, poverty, organized crime, and migration flows toward the United States. The Legionaries also try to be a balm for migrants — many of them deportees — amid their suffering.

“The whole situation of migrants and organized crime truly causes suffering for many families affected by this reality. What we seek, above all, is to form young people and families, to instill values in them, precisely so they can begin to change their social environment,” he said.

In this context, he explained that alongside the private schools the congregation operates in cities in northern Mexico, there are also the Mano Amiga schools, intended for families with limited resources and supported through subsidies and scholarships.

The goal is to offer these children an education that will allow them to enter a profession and pursue university studies — “a way to change the destiny of their lives, open horizons for them, and, above all, form them in values so they can transform their environment.”

With his election at the most recent general chapter, the Legionaries of Christ have entrusted Gutiérrez López with the task of continuing the congregation’s process of renewal and strengthening its evangelizing service, with special attention to the existential peripheries.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

The Vatican released a letter May 4 but dated November 2024 in which the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) categorically rejected a proposal from the German episcopate to introduce ritualized blessings for couples in same-sex unions and irregular situations, warning that such blessings could be interpreted as the legitimization of unions incompatible with Church doctrine.

The letter is signed by the prefect of the dicastery, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, and addressed to Stephan Ackermann, bishop of Trier, and through him to the entire German episcopate.

In the letter, dated Nov. 18, 2024, Rome issued a categorical rejection of a text proposing the implementation of blessings with a prescribed ritual form.

The DDF in the letter responds to a “vademecum” (an authoritative handbook or reference guide) drafted by the German episcopate in October 2024 as a guide for priests. Written in German and Italian, it was intended to serve as a practical aid for “Blessings for Couples Who Love Each Other” and was presented as an application of the declaration Fiducia Supplicans to the “pastoral reality” in Germany.

The background: Fiducia Supplicans

In 2023, the DDF published the document Fiducia Supplicans, which opened the possibility of blessing couples “in irregular situations” or of the same sex, without equating them to marriage. The text specified that such blessings could not be performed with a precise ritual nor with signs characteristic of a wedding.

The Church in Africa subsequently expressed its unanimous rejection of the document and requested clarifications from Pope Francis. Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the leader of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, said the document did not apply to the Eastern Catholic Churches.

In the November 2024 letter, which it has published on its website, the DDF recalled that Fiducia Supplicans clearly establishes that the “Church does not have the power to confer its liturgical blessing when this, in any way, might offer a form of moral legitimation to a union that purports to be a marriage or to an extramarital sexual practice,” nor to those who claim “the legitimation of their own status.”

In light of this, Fernández’s letter notes that the German “vademecum” “speaks of a union and of an ‘official regulation’ on the part of pastors of couples who love one another outside of marriage” and even of an “acclamation,” a “gesture normally prescribed in the marriage rite.” In this regard, the Vatican states that such an act legitimizes “the status of such couples, in a manner contrary to what was affirmed by Fiducia Supplicans.”

Why the Vatican is publishing it now

The November 2024 letter began circulating widely on the internet this week, causing confusion as it was presented as if it were a recent pronouncement.

“The Holy Father stated on the return flight from Africa that the Holy See had already sent a response regarding this matter to the German bishops, and many were asking where that response was or what it said. For that reason, we decided to make it public,” Fernández explained in a statement to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.

The Holy See ‘does not agree’

During his return flight to Rome following an 11-day tour of Africa, Pope Leo XIV stated to journalists on April 23 that the Holy See “does not agree with the formal blessing of homosexual couples.”

The pontiff was responding to a question from a journalist regarding a directive issued by German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, archbishop of Munich and Freising, who had urged priests and pastoral workers to offer blessings in a uniform manner to same-sex couples or to divorced and remarried individuals within his archdiocese.

Before responding directly, Leo XIV emphasized that “the unity or division of the Church should not revolve around sexual matters” and lamented the tendency to reduce Christian morality solely to that area. “In reality, I believe there are much greater and more important issues, such as justice, the equality, freedom of men and women, freedom of religion, that would all take priority before that particular issue,” he stated.

Nevertheless, the pope noted that “the Holy See has already addressed the German bishops and has made it clear that it does not agree with the formal blessing of same-sex couples.”

“When a priest gives the blessing at the end of Mass, or when the pope gives a blessing at the end of a great celebration, like the one we had today, there are blessings for all people,” he noted, recalling the famous expression of his predecessor, Francis: “Tutti, tutti, tutti” ("everyone, everyone, everyone”).

Going beyond this, Leo XIV warned, “can cause more disunity than unity.” “Everyone is invited to follow Jesus, and everyone is invited to seek conversion in their own lives,” he explained.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

The faithful curious about who Pope Leo XIV was before his election to the papacy now have a new window into the Augustinian spirituality that shaped him.

The Order of St. Augustine and the Vatican Publishing House have published a book by Pope Leo XIV titled “Free Under Grace: Writings and Meditations 2001–2013,” a collection of texts written during his years as prior general of the Augustinian order.

The volume includes for the first time speeches, homilies, letters, messages, and meditations written during the more than 10 years in which Robert Francis Prevost led the Order of St. Augustine. According to a statement, the book offers readers a “closer look at his spirituality,” deeply marked by the Augustinian tradition.

The first copy of the Italian edition, which arrived in bookstores Monday — four days before the first anniversary of Leo XIV’s pontificate — was presented to Pope Leo XIV by Father Joseph Lawrence Farrell, OSA, the current prior general of the Order of St. Augustine and promoter of the publication.

Also taking part in the presentation were Father Rocco Ronzani, OSA, prefect of the Vatican Apostolic Archive and one of the book’s editors, and Lorenzo Fazzini, editorial director of the Vatican Publishing House.

In addition to Ronzani, the book was edited by Augustinian Fathers Miguel Ángel Martín Juárez and Michael Di Gregorio. The official presentation of the volume took place last October during the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany, though its commercial distribution in Italy began Monday.

The Vatican Publishing House confirmed to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, that the text will be published in the coming months in several languages, including Spanish and English, and is currently being translated in nearly 30 countries.

“The book, which compiles many of the communications of then-Prior General Robert Francis Prevost, OSA, offers an overview of some of the important themes developed during his years at the head of the Order of St. Augustine,” Farrell said.

The pages include spiritual reflections, meditations, and homilies that anticipate central aspects of the thought and spirituality of the man who is now Pope Leo XIV.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

On Monday, the Holy See Press Office confirmed that Pope Leo XIV will meet with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 7.

The meeting follows a period of tension between the Holy See and U.S. President Donald Trump. In April, Trump publicly attacked the pontiff on social media, calling him “weak on crime and terrible for foreign policy” in response to the pontiffʼs appeals for peace amid the U.S.-Israel war on Iran.

Leo XIV has called repeatedly for a peaceful resolution to the armed conflict in the Middle East. In April, he described Trumpʼs threats against Iranian civilization as "not acceptable."

Trump criticized Leo, stating that he did not “want a pope who thinks itʼs OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon.” Leo responded that he had “no fear of the Trump administration” but a few days later said he had no interest in debating the president.

As originally reported by Vatican News, Rubio will meet the pope at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 7. It will be their second meeting, following their previous meeting after the popeʼs Mass of installation on May 18, 2025. U.S. Vice President JD Vance was also in attendance at that meeting.

Also on the morning of May 7, Leo will meet with the prime minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, at 9 a.m.

Pope Leo XIV praised the work of Catholic Charities USA on Monday, encouraging the organization not to be discouraged despite institutional challenges.

In his address to the board of directors during a private audience, the pontiff expressed gratitude for their work with the less fortunate in the United States and noted the current funding difficulties the organization and similar organizations face from the United States government.

“As was the case with the apostles and with the early Church, the proclamation of the Gospel through caring for the poor and for those most in need will always present certain difficulties on both the personal and the institutional levels,” Leo said. “I am fully aware that the Catholic Charities agencies in the United States of America are by no means immune from these challenges that continue to manifest themselves in our own day. Yet it is precisely when we are confronted with such obstacles that we must learn to hear Jesus’ voice saying to us once again, ‘I am with you always!’”

Kerry Robinson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, described the audience with Leo as encouraging for their work in helping disadvantaged people. In a press briefing after the audience, she discussed her organizationʼs recent funding cuts from the U.S. government, citing policy differences on migration and donor skepticism following cases of abuse in the U.S. Catholic Church.

“Agencies that have had decades-long relationships with the USCCB to resettle refugees continue to care for the people in their charge, even in light of across-the-board federal cuts,” Robinson told EWTN News. “Catholic Charities USA at the national level is almost entirely privately funded, so we did not see direct cuts. For 20 years, we have been working to usher in a culture of contemporary best practices, accountability, and financial transparency to restore trust in the Church. Because of the hard work of the last two decades, we do not see that crisis negatively affecting Catholic Charities' fundraising today.”

During the audience, Robinson gave the pope a book detailing the “People of Hope: Faith-Filled Stories of Neighbors Helping Neighbors” initiative in which a museum of hope, outfitted in a car, will embark on a three-year nationwide tour, encouraging visitors to the car museum to look for ways to help the less fortunate.

Robinson described the initiative as not merely making a difference in oneʼs life but as a cause to “actually end generational cycles of violence and poverty.”

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday remembered journalists and reporters killed by war and violence, warning that press freedom is often violated around the world.

Speaking after the May 3 Regina Caeli in St. Peter’s Square, the pope noted that the day marked World Press Freedom Day, promoted by UNESCO.

“Unfortunately, this right is often violated — sometimes blatantly, sometimes in more subtle ways,” Pope Leo said. “Let us remember the many journalists and reporters who have fallen victim to wars and violence.”

The pope’s appeal came as press freedom faces growing pressure worldwide. According to the 2026 World Press Freedom Index from Reporters Without Borders, global press freedom has deteriorated to its lowest point in at least 25 years, with more than half of the world’s countries now classified as being in a “difficult” or “very serious” situation for journalism.

The organization has warned that journalists face mounting economic pressure, direct violence, legal threats, and other restrictions that compromise the independence of the media.

The pope also marked the beginning of May, a month traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, inviting Catholics to pray the rosary.

“The month of May has begun: throughout the Church, the joy of gathering in the name of Mary, our Mother, is renewed, especially by praying the Rosary together,” he said.

Leo entrusted his intentions to Mary, “particularly for communion within the Church and for peace in the world.”

Earlier, in his catechesis before the Marian prayer, the pope reflected on Sunday’s Gospel from the Last Supper, in which Jesus tells his disciples: “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.”

Leo said this promise “involves us from this moment onwards in the mystery of his Resurrection” and reveals that “God has a place for everyone.”

“Even now, faced with death, Jesus speaks of a home, but this time a very large one,” he said. “It is the house of his Father and our Father, where there is room for all.”

The pope contrasted the world’s attraction to exclusive places and privileges with the new world opened by the risen Christ.

“In the new world into which the risen One leads us, however, what is most valuable is within everyone’s reach,” he said. “Gratitude takes the place of competition; welcome overcomes exclusion; and abundance no longer entails inequality.”

Leo said faith frees the heart “from the anxiety of possessing and acquiring” and from the illusion that human worth depends on prestige.

“Each person already has infinite worth in the mystery of God, which is the true reality,” he said.

By living Christ’s new commandment of love, the pope said, Christians already “anticipate heaven on earth.”

“By loving one another as Jesus has loved us, we impart this awareness to one another,” he said. “This is the new commandment; in this way, we anticipate heaven on earth and reveal to all that fraternity and peace are our calling.”

The pope concluded by asking Catholics to pray to Mary Most Holy, Mother of the Church, “that every Christian community may be a home open to all and attentive to each person.”

After the Regina Caeli, Leo greeted pilgrims from Rome and many countries, including Spain, the United States, Malaysia, and Peru. He also thanked the Meter Association, which for 30 years has worked to defend minors from abuse, support victims, and promote prevention.

“Thank you for your service!” the pope said.

This story was first published in two parts by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated, combined, and adapted by EWTN News English.

The Catholic Church on May 2 honors St. Athanasius of Alexandria, a fourth-century bishop known as “the father of orthodoxy” for his dedication to the doctrine of Christ’s divinity. Athanasius played a key role at the First Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 and defended the Nicene Creed throughout his life.

Last year marked the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which was convened during the pontificate of Pope Sylvester I in 325.

St. Athanasius was born to Christian parents living in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in 296. His parents took great care to have their son educated, and his talents came to the attention of a local priest who was later canonized — St. Alexander of Alexandria. The priest and future saint tutored Athanasius in theology and eventually appointed him as an assistant.

Around the age of 19, Athanasius spent a formative period in the Egyptian desert as a disciple of St. Anthony in his monastic community. Returning to Alexandria, he was ordained a deacon in 319 and resumed his assistance to Alexander, who had become a bishop. The Catholic Church, newly recognized by the Roman Empire, was already encountering a new series of dangers from within.

The most serious threat to the fourth-century Church came from a priest named Arius, who taught that Jesus could not have existed eternally as God prior to his historical incarnation as a man. According to Arius, Jesus was the highest of created beings and could be considered “divine” only by analogy. Arians professed a belief in Jesus’ “divinity” but meant only that he was Godʼs greatest creature.

Opponents of Arianism brought forth numerous Scriptures that taught Christ’s eternal preexistence and his identity as God. Nonetheless, many Greek-speaking Christians found it intellectually easier to believe in Jesus as a created demigod than to accept the mystery of a Father-Son relationship within the Godhead. By 325, the controversy was dividing the Church and unsettling the Roman Empire.

Nicaea

In that year, Athanasius attended the First Ecumenical Council, held at Nicaea to examine and judge Arius’ doctrine in light of apostolic tradition. It reaffirmed the Church’s perennial teaching on Christ’s full deity and established the Nicene Creed as an authoritative statement of faith. The remainder of Athanasius’ life was a constant struggle to uphold the council’s teaching about Christ.

Near the end of St. Alexander’s life, he insisted that Athanasius succeed him as the bishop of Alexandria. Athanasius took on the position just as Emperor Constantine, despite having convoked the Council of Nicaea, decided to relax its condemnation of Arius and his supporters. Athanasius continually refused to admit Arius to Communion, however, despite the urgings of the emperor.

A number of Arians spent the next several decades attempting to manipulate bishops, emperors, and popes to move against Athanasius — particularly through the use of false accusations. Athanasius was accused of theft, murder, assault, and even of causing a famine by interfering with food shipments.

Arius became ill and died in 336, but his heresy continued to live. Under the rule of the three emperors that followed Constantine, and particularly under the rule of the strongly Arian Constantius, Athanasius was driven into exile at least five times for insisting on the Nicene Creed as the Church’s authoritative rule of faith.

Athanasius received the support of several popes and spent a portion of his exile in Rome. However, the Emperor Constantius did succeed in coercing one pope, Liberius, into condemning Athanasius by having him kidnapped, threatened with death, and sent away from Rome for two years. The pope eventually managed to return to Rome, where he again proclaimed Athanasius’ orthodoxy.

Constantius went so far as to send troops to attack his clergy and congregations. Neither these measures nor direct attempts to assassinate the bishop succeeded in silencing him. However, they frequently made it difficult for him to remain in his diocese. He enjoyed some respite after Constantius’ death in 361 but was later persecuted by Emperor Julian the Apostate, who sought to revive paganism.

In 369, Athanasius managed to convene an assembly of 90 bishops in Alexandria for the sake of warning the Church in Africa against the continuing threat of Arianism. He died in 373 and was vindicated by a more comprehensive rejection of Arianism at the Second Ecumenical Council, held in 381 at Constantinople.

St. Gregory Nazianzen, who presided over part of that council, described St. Athanasius as “the true pillar of the Church” whose “life and conduct were the rule of bishops and his doctrine the rule of the orthodox faith.”

This story was last published on May 2, 2025, and has been updated.

The Supervisory and Financial Information and Authority (ASIF, by its Italian acronym), the body established by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 to put an end to irregularities, received a total of 78 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) within its financial system in 2025.

Of these reports, 73 were linked to accounts held at the Institute for the Works of Religion — known as the Vatican Bank — four originated from various entities of the Holy See and the Vatican City State, while one pertained to another unspecified organization.

The annual report, presented April 30, underscores, according to the Vatican, “the robustness” of its own oversight system regarding “the prevention of and fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.”

According to the report, there has also been “a strengthening” of relations with counterpart agencies and key international bodies, as part of its commitment to international standards in the field of financial oversight.

In 2024, the Vatican’s financial watchdog received 79 reports of suspicious activity, representing a 36% decrease compared with 2023, when 123 cases were identified.

Compared with the previous year, the report notes a lower incidence of communications related to the use of cash, a phenomenon that, according to the official statement, would be linked to a reduction in financial flows passing through Vatican City State. In 2024, these flows totaled 27,866,033 euros ($32.6 million), whereas last year the figure was 18,770,783 euros ($22 million).

This trend is also reflected in the statistics regarding declarations of cross-border cash transport.

The report also indicates that a financial transaction valued at approximately 522,000 euros ($611,883) was suspended as a preventive measure in light of potential illegality, although the report does not specify the date or the intended purpose of said amount.

Despite this, the qualitative level of the communications received by the ASIF remains stable, as evidenced by both the volume of exchanges with other authorities and the preventive measures adopted. Financial intelligence continues to be a key element in the conduct of subsequent investigative activities.

Throughout 2025, the ASIF sent 16 reports to the Office of the Promoter of Justice, the body that exercises prosecutorial functions, a figure slightly higher than that of the previous year, when 11 cases were referred.

Internally, the report specifically highlights the strengthening of collaboration between the authorities of the Holy See and those of Vatican City State.

The flow of communications with key domestic counterparts saw a notable increase compared with the previous year, with a 65% rise in incoming communications and a 31% rise in outgoing ones — a figure that, according to the document, reflects an increasingly integrated and cohesive system.

Likewise, international cooperation activities have been strengthened, with the participation of the Holy See in Moneyval, the Council of Europe body tasked with assessing systems for the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, among other forums.

The report concludes by highlighting the close and constant cooperation with the Vatican Gendarmerie Corps, which has established itself as a central interlocutor in the work carried out by ASIF.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of May is that everyone might have food.

In a video released on X, the Holy Father asked the faithful: “What do you feel about 318 million people experiencing acute hunger every day?”

“We need to act, but without prayer we will remain powerless,” he said. “This May, I invite you to join me in prayer that we may seriously commit to avoiding food waste and to ensuring that everyone has access to quality food every day.”

In the full video shared on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website, Pope Leo recites an original prayer written specifically for this month’s prayer intention.

Here is the pope’s full prayer:

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Lord of creation,

You gave us the fertile earth and, with it, our daily bread,

as a sign of your love and providence.

Today we recognize with sorrow

that millions of brothers and sisters continue to suffer from hunger,

while so many goods are wasted at our tables.

Awaken in us a new awareness:

that we learn to thank for every food,

to consume simply,

to share with joy,

and to care for the fruits of the earth as a gift from you,

destined for all, not just a few.

Good Father,

make us capable of transforming the logic of selfish consumption

into a culture of solidarity.

May our communities promote concrete gestures:

awareness campaigns, food banks,

and a sober and responsible lifestyle.

You who sent us your beloved Son Jesus,

broken bread for the life of the world,

give us a new heart, hungry for justice and thirsty for fraternity.

May no one be excluded from the common table,

and may your Spirit teach us to see bread

not as an object of consumption,

but as a sign of communion and care.

Amen.

“Pray with the Pope” is accessible on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website and its digital platforms.