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Khaleej Times
16-07-2025
- General
- Khaleej Times
Italy sorts vast piles of post for popular Pope Leo
Leo XIV has not long been pope, yet the American head of the Catholic Church already receives 100 kg of letters a day, faithfully sorted by the Italian post office. Missives from around the world, addressed to "His Holiness" in flowing cursive, in stark block capitals or in scrawls, are sorted into a series of yellow crates in a vast hangar near Rome's Fiumicino airport. Robert Francis Prevost was a relatively unknown churchman when he was elected pontiff on May 8, but vast numbers of the faithful are penning him letters of support and pleas for him to pray on their behalf. "We receive hundreds of letters a day addressed to the pope, with peaks of 100 kilos (220 pounds) per day, or an average of 500 to 550 kilos per week," Antonello Chidichimo, director of the sorting centre, told AFP. "There are many letters written by children, postcards, and it's wonderful to see that in the digital age, many people still use a pen to write to the pope," he noted. Bearing colourful stamps, the day's letters — one of which is decorated with hand-drawn red hearts — arrive from as far afield as Andorra, Brazil, Cameroon, Hong Kong or the US. After being sorted by machine — or by hand if a hand-written address is indecipherable — the mail is collected by a van that delivers it the same day to the Vatican, about 20 km away. Pilgrims and tourists visiting the Vatican can also write to the pope and drop their letters directly — no stamp needed — at the Vatican Post Office, where it is collected four times a day. "Many of those who drop off these letters come from South America or Asia," Nicola Vaccaro, an employee at the central office in St Peter's Square, told AFP. "They mainly write to ask for intercession (prayers) for a sick person or a loved one," he said. Among the letters and packages, Vaccaro has even seen someone post the pope a teddy bear. Behind the walls of the world's smallest state, the mail is centralised and sorted by the Secretariat of State, which performs standard security checks before delivering it to the pope's inner circle. Senders who provide their address can expect a response — from the Vatican or on rare occasions the pontiff himself. Leo's predecessor Pope Francis, who received a bumper postbag as he battled ill health before his death earlier this year, had been known to answer some letters in person. His handwritten notes were scanned by his private secretary who then sent them by email.
Int'l Business Times
16-07-2025
- General
- Int'l Business Times
Italy Sorts Vast Piles Of Post For Popular Pope Leo
Leo XIV has not long been pope, yet the American head of the Catholic Church already receives 100 kilogrammes of letters a day, faithfully sorted by the Italian post office. Missives from around the world, addressed to "His Holiness" in flowing cursive, in stark block capitals or in scrawls, are sorted into a series of yellow crates in a vast hangar near Rome's Fiumicino airport. Robert Francis Prevost was a relatively unknown churchman when he was elected pontiff on May 8, but vast numbers of the faithful are penning him letters of support and pleas for him to pray on their behalf. "We receive hundreds of letters a day addressed to the pope, with peaks of 100 kilos (220 pounds) per day, or an average of 500 to 550 kilos per week," Antonello Chidichimo, director of the sorting centre, told AFP. "There are many letters written by children, postcards, and it's wonderful to see that in the digital age, many people still use a pen to write to the pope," he noted. Bearing colourful stamps, the day's letters -- one of which is decorated with hand-drawn red hearts -- arrive from as far afield as Andorra, Brazil, Cameroon, Hong Kong or the US. After being sorted by machine -- or by hand if a hand-written address is indecipherable -- the mail is collected by a van that delivers it the same day to the Vatican, about 20 kilometres (12 miles) away. Pilgrims and tourists visiting the Vatican can also write to the pope and drop their letters directly -- no stamp needed -- at the Vatican Post Office, where it is collected four times a day. "Many of those who drop off these letters come from South America or Asia," Nicola Vaccaro, an employee at the central office in St Peter's Square, told AFP. "They mainly write to ask for intercession (prayers) for a sick person or a loved one," he said. Among the letters and packages, Vaccaro has even seen someone post the pope a teddy bear. Behind the walls of the world's smallest state, the mail is centralised and sorted by the Secretariat of State, which performs standard security checks before delivering it to the pope's inner circle. Senders who provide their address can expect a response -- from the Vatican or on rare occasions the pontiff himself. Leo's predecessor Pope Francis, who received a bumper postbag as he battled ill health before his death earlier this year, had been known to answer some letters in person. His handwritten notes were scanned by his private secretary who then sent them -- by email. A decidcated sorting area in the technical area of Rome's Fiumicino Airport allows Italian postal workers to handle the pope's huge letterbox AFP Many of the faithful that write to Pope Leo XIV receive replies from the Vatican AFP
News18
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Is Pope Leo XIV Related To Madonna, Justin Bieber And Angelina Jolie? Family Tree Reveals…
Pope Leo XIV also has African-American roots. (File) Pope Leo XIV (Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost), the first American to ascend to the papacy, has an astonishingly celebrity-ridden family tree that links him to some of the most famous names in pop culture— including Madonna, Justin Bieber, and Angelina Jolie. An extensive genealogical study by The New York Times, in collaboration with American Ancestors and the Cuban Genealogy Club of Miami, has unearthed the fascinating heritage.
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First Post
16-06-2025
- General
- First Post
Pope Leo is a relative of Clinton, Trudeau and Madonna: A historian traces his family tree
Pope Leo's lineage is international. His ancestors were born in France, Italy, Spain, the US, Cuba, Canada, Haiti, and Guadeloupe. The birthplaces of nine others remain unknown read more On May 8, American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost became Pope Leo XIV. Later that day, The Times published findings from genealogist Jari C. Honora, revealing that the new pope has recent African American ancestry, traced back just three generations. Research goes back to the 1500s The discovery sparked interest from viewers of PBS's Finding Your Roots, hosted by Henry Louis Gates Jr. In collaboration with genealogists at American Ancestors and the Cuban Genealogy Club of Miami, Gates traced the pope's ancestry back to his 12th-great-grandparents, who lived in the early 1500s. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Famous cousins Further research uncovered connections to public figures. Through a distant maternal ancestor born in the 1590s, Pope Leo is a ninth cousin (various times removed) of Hillary Clinton, Pierre and Justin Trudeau, Angelina Jolie, Justin Bieber, Jack Kerouac, and Madonna. A global family tree Pope Leo's lineage is international. His ancestors were born in France (40), Italy (24), Spain (21), the U.S. (22), Cuba (10), Canada (6), Haiti (1), and Guadeloupe (1). The birthplaces of nine others remain unknown. Black ancestry, including his grandfather Seventeen of the pope's American-born ancestors were identified as Black in historical records, described using terms such as 'negresse,' 'free person of colour,' and 'quadroon.' His grandfather, Joseph Nerval Martínez, was born in Haiti to African American parents who had returned to New Orleans in 1866. A complex American story Twelve of the pope's known ancestors were slaveholders—eight of them Black. One ancestor, Marie Jeanne, was born enslaved, later freed, and eventually became a landowner with 1,040 acres and five enslaved individuals. The family tree also includes revolutionary figures: one fought for American independence; another, Antonio José de Sucre, was a Latin American independence hero and Bolivia's first president.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How to watch Pope Leo's Chicago celebration: Start time, date, more
Just weeks after the election of Pope Leo XIV, the Chicago native is set to be celebrated across the world right from his North American hometown. According to the Archdiocese of Chicago's website, the event, set to to honor Pope Leo XIV − formerly Robert Francis Prevost − is slated for June 14 at Rate Field, home to the Chicago White Sox. The Catholic leader, ordained in 1981 as a member of the Order of Saint Augustine, was elected pope on May 8 to succeed Pope Francis, who died in April of a stroke and heart failure, according to a death certificate written by a Vatican doctor released in late April. Here's what to know about Pope Leo XIV's speech, what time it starts and how to watch it. Pope Leo XIV receives Villanova hat during meeting, reps alma mater at Vatican Although he is not expected to attend the celebration, The Archdiocese of Chicago reported it is set to take place on June 14 at Rate Field in Chicago. The baseball stadium is home of the Chicago White Sox. Streaming guide: Deals, bundles and free trials on Disney+, Peacock, Sling TV Gates to the stadium are set to open at 12:30 p.m. CT., according to The Archdiocese of Chicago's website. The program kicks off at 2:30 p.m. followed by Mass at 4 p.m. (also both CT). Pope Leo's celebration will be livestreamed on the The Archdiocese of Chicago's website. It can also be viewed on YouTube. Tickets for the event cost $5, according to The Archdiocese of Chicago's website. Contributing: Fernando Cervantes Jr. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is Pope Leo's celebration in Chicago? How to watch
