Pope Leo XIV on inauguration: Offer God's love to everyone
Pope Leo XIV urged the faithful around the world to be instruments of unity and communion during his inauguration as the 267th pope of the Roman Catholic Church on Sunday.
'Brothers and sisters, I would like that our first great desire be for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world,' Pope Leo XIV said during his homily at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City.
'This is the missionary spirit that must animate us; not closing ourselves off in our small groups, nor feeling superior to the world. We are called to offer God's love to everyone, in order to achieve that unity which does not cancel out differences but values the personal history of each person and the social and religious culture of every people,' he added.
The new pontiff lamented over the 'discord' among the people observed in the current times.
'In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth's resources and marginalizes the poorest,' he said.
The 69-year-old Augustinian pope reminded Catholics that love goes beyond differences.
'The ministry of Peter is distinguished precisely by this self-sacrificing love, because the Church of Rome presides in charity and its true authority is the charity of Christ,' the pope said.
'It is never a question of capturing others by force, by religious propaganda or by means of power. Instead, it is always and only a question of loving as Jesus did, he added.
Pope Leo XIV was elected as the successor of the late Pope Francis on May 9 after a two-day Papal Conclave. He will lead lead 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.
—Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News
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GMA Network
2 days ago
- GMA Network
Pope Leo, in first month, makes a break in style from Francis
Pope Leo XIV gestures on the day he holds a general audience in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican June 4, 2025. REUTERS/ Guglielmo Mangiapane VATICAN CITY — In his first month, Pope Leo has taken a very different approach to his predecessor Francis. Leo, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost, has led some two dozen public events since he was elected as the first US pope on May 8 but not made notable appointments, nor announced plans for foreign trips, nor said where he will live at the Vatican. It's a stark contrast to when Francis, originally from Argentina, was selected as the first pope from the Americas in March 2013. Within a month, Francis had announced he would be the first pontiff in more than a century to live outside the Vatican's apostolic palace, appointed his successor as Archbishop of Buenos Aires and created a new formal advisory group of senior Catholic cardinals. Two of Leo's long-time associates told Reuters they expect the 69-year-old Pope to take a deliberative approach to the challenges facing the Catholic Church and may require months before making major decisions. "Leo is taking his time," Rev. Mark Francis, a friend of the new pontiff since the 1970s, told Reuters. "While he is going to continue in the path indicated by Pope Francis, his disposition is very different." Leo was first appointed a bishop by Francis in 2015 and then chosen by the late pope to take up a senior Vatican role two years ago. He has frequently praised his predecessor in his first weeks. He has also repeated some of Francis' main themes, and has echoed the Argentine pontiff's emotional appeals for an end to the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. But the two men have different temperaments, according to Rev. Francis, who attended seminary with Leo in Chicago and later knew him when they both lived in Rome in the 2000s. "Leo is much more focused and methodical and not inclined to hasty decisions," he said. Among the challenges facing the American pope is the Vatican's €83-million ($95-million) budget shortfall, which Reuters reported in February had stirred contention among senior cardinals under his predecessor. Other looming issues facing the 1.4 billion-member Church include declining adherence to the faith in Europe, ongoing revelations of clerical sexual abuse, and doctrinal debates over matters such as inclusion of LGBT Catholics and the possibility of women's ordination. Francis, who sought to modernize the Church, did not formally change many doctrines but garnered criticism from conservative cardinals by opening the door to communion for divorcees and blessings for same-sex couples. Rev. Anthony Pizzo, who has known Leo since 1974 when they attended Villanova University outside Philadelphia together, said the pope is someone who listens carefully and seeks to hear many viewpoints before making decisions. "This is going to be his modus operandi," said Pizzo, who leads the Midwest US province of the Augustinian religious order, to which Leo also belongs. "When you first come into leadership, listen well, get to know your constituency … to make a well-informed decision," Pizzo added, describing the pope's thought process. A 'shy' listener Francis and Leo came to the papacy at different ages and with different career backgrounds. Francis, elected at age 76, had been a cardinal for 12 years before ascending to the papacy. He had earlier been a leading contender in the 2005 conclave that elected his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. Leo, seven years younger when he donned the white papal cassock, is a relative unknown on the world stage who only became a cardinal and Vatican official two years ago. He spent most of his prior career as a missionary in Peru. Early in his tenure, Francis told journalists that, due to his age, he expected to have a brief papacy of only a few years. Leo, the youngest pontiff since John Paul II was elected at age 58 in 1978, can perhaps expect a papacy of ten or more years. Among the challenges facing the new pope is a Vatican budget shortfall estimated at 83 million euros, two knowledgeable sources told Reuters. The city-state also has a much larger gap in its pension fund, said to total some 631 million euros by the Vatican's finance czar in 2022 but estimated by several insiders to have since ballooned significantly. In his first weeks, Leo has not addressed the budget issues and has made only a few new appointments to Vatican roles. But he has held formal one-on-one meetings with many senior Vatican officials, which Pizzo suggested the pope could be using to try to learn quickly. Rev. Jorge Martinez Vizueta, who knew Leo in Peru, said he is someone who pays close attention to what people tell him. "He listens a lot, even with a certain shyness," said Martinez, an Augustinian at a monastery where Leo previously was a spiritual advisor. Although Leo has not announced where he will live, more than three informed sources said he is expected to move into the official papal apartments in the Vatican's apostolic palace overlooking St. Peter's Square. Francis shunned the palace in favor of a Vatican hotel. One senior source, who asked not to be identified, said the papal apartments, which have not been lived in since 2013, will require at least 2 to 3 months of renovations. Careful with responses While Francis made some big decisions quickly in his first month, he also took time on other issues. He did not make his first trip abroad until late July 2013, four months into his papacy. Leo's first foreign trip is likely to be to Turkey, to celebrate the 1,700th anniversary of an early Church council with Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Vatican has not announced the trip, but it was previously planned for Francis. Bartholomew told an Italian television station that he and Leo discussed the possibility of the new pope travelling to Turkey in late November. Francis, who often spoke off the cuff, was known for giving freewheeling news conferences on flights home from his trips abroad and frequently responded to queries with an unexpected quip. Asked during his first flight home about a Vatican official said to be gay, Francis famously responded: "If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?" Rev. Francis said Leo, who in his first month has largely read from prepared texts, is likely to be more careful with his responses during news conferences. "He won't be shooting from the hip like Francis did while speaking with journalists," said the priest. — Reuters
GMA Network
18-05-2025
- GMA Network
Pope Leo meets Zelenskiy, recalls ‘martyred Ukraine'
This photo taken and handout on May 18, 2025 by The Vatican Media shows Pope Leo XIV during a private audience with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his wife Olena Zelenska in The Vatican, after the pontiff's inauguration. Handout / Vatican Media/ AFP VATICAN CITY, Holy See — Pope Leo XIV held his first private audience as Catholic leader on Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, after highlighting the hopes for peace for a "martyred Ukraine." Zelenskiy attended the inauguration mass on Sunday morning of Leo, the first pope from the United States, where he also shook hands with US Vice President JD Vance. The politicians were among hundreds of dignitaries and an estimated 200,000 members of the public who attended the ceremony in St Peter's Square, 10 days after Leo became the first US head of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. "The martyred Ukraine is waiting for negotiations for a just and lasting peace to finally happen," the 69-year-old pope said in a prayer after the mass. Zelenskiy lined up to shake hands with Pope Leo afterwards, and then he and his wife joined the pontiff for a private audience. In a video published by the Vatican, the soft-spoken Leo told the Ukrainian leader: "Nice to see you again." When they were all seated, he apologized for making the couple wait. As is customary, they also exchanged gifts. Leo only had two private audiences on Sunday. The other was with President Dina Boluarte of Peru, a country where the pontiff worked as a missionary for two decades and of which he also has citizenship. Special words Earlier, in his homily, Leo said he wanted the Church to be a "leaven for a reconciled world," calling for peace. In response, Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram: "We are grateful for the special words spoken today at the solemn mass about the need for a just peace and for the attention given to Ukraine and our people. "Every nation deserves to live in peace and security." He offered his congratulations to the pope "on the beginning of such a special mission." "May the prayers for a just peace and a dignified life for all people be heard," he said. The late Pope Francis met Zelenskiy several times and repeatedly called for peace in Ukraine, even appointing a special envoy who visited Kyiv and Moscow. But many Ukrainians remember him bitterly for failing to clearly blame Russia for its invasion and calling for Ukraine to raise the "white flag." Moscow and Kyiv held their first direct talks in more than three years this week but did not agree to a truce. In his Regina Coeli prayer at the end of the mass, Leo also noted: "In Gaza, children, families and elderly survivors are reduced to hunger." And he recalled how "in Myanmar, new hostilities have destroyed innocent young lives." — Agence France-Presse
GMA Network
18-05-2025
- GMA Network
Pope Leo XIV on inauguration: Offer God's love to everyone
Pope Leo XIV urged the faithful around the world to be instruments of unity and communion during his inauguration as the 267th pope of the Roman Catholic Church on Sunday. 'Brothers and sisters, I would like that our first great desire be for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world,' Pope Leo XIV said during his homily at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. 'This is the missionary spirit that must animate us; not closing ourselves off in our small groups, nor feeling superior to the world. We are called to offer God's love to everyone, in order to achieve that unity which does not cancel out differences but values the personal history of each person and the social and religious culture of every people,' he added. The new pontiff lamented over the 'discord' among the people observed in the current times. 'In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth's resources and marginalizes the poorest,' he said. The 69-year-old Augustinian pope reminded Catholics that love goes beyond differences. 'The ministry of Peter is distinguished precisely by this self-sacrificing love, because the Church of Rome presides in charity and its true authority is the charity of Christ,' the pope said. 'It is never a question of capturing others by force, by religious propaganda or by means of power. Instead, it is always and only a question of loving as Jesus did, he added. Pope Leo XIV was elected as the successor of the late Pope Francis on May 9 after a two-day Papal Conclave. He will lead lead 1.4 billion Catholics around the world. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News
