VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Launching his papacy with a call for reconciliation and communion, Pope Leo XIV formally began his ministry as the successor of St. Peter by calling for “a united church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world.”
“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,” the new pope said in his homily during his inauguration Mass May 18.
“For our part, we want to be a small leaven of unity, communion and fraternity within the world,” he told the estimated 150,000 people gathered in and around St. Peter’s Square. “We want to say to the world, with humility and joy: Look to Christ! Come closer to him! Welcome his word that enlightens and consoles! Listen to his offer of love and become his one family: ‘In the one Christ, we are one.'”
A version of the quote from St. Augustine is the pope’s episcopal motto and is featured on his coat of arms.
Ecumenical and interreligious guests and more than 100 government delegations joined the new pope for Mass in St. Peter’s Square. The United States was represented by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, accompanied by their spouses and senior White House aides.
Vance and the second lady, Usha Vance, visited Pope Francis’ tomb in the Basilica of St. Mary Major the evening before the Mass. “He was beloved by many Catholics around the world, and I hope you will join me in praying for the repose of his soul,” he wrote in a post on X.
Among the Christian leaders present was Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, along with other delegations from the Orthodox churches, the Anglican Communion, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Methodist Council, the World Communion of Reformed Churches and various evangelical and Pentecostal communities. Representatives of the Jewish community as well as Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Zoroastrian and Jain traditions also were in attendance.
Before the Mass began, Pope Leo rode through the square in the popemobile for the first time since his election May 8, greeting the faithful as cheers of “Viva il papa!” (“Long live the pope!’) poured out from the crowd. He then entered the basilica to pray at the tomb of St. Peter, accompanied by patriarchs of the Eastern Catholic churches.
Following the Gospel reading, three cardinals from the different orders within the College of Cardinals took part in the formal beginning of the Petrine ministry: Italian Cardinal Mario Zenari placed the woolen pallium on the pope’s shoulders, symbolizing his role as shepherd of the universal church; Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle presented him with the fisherman’s ring, evoking St. Peter’s mission to draw people into Christ’s net; and Congolese Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo offered a prayer invoking the strength of the Holy Spirit for the new pontificate.
Representing the universal church, 12 people — clergy, religious and laity from around the world — then came forward to offer their obedience to the new pope.
Reflecting on the Gospel reading from St. John — in which Jesus asks St. Peter three times to tend to his sheep — Pope Leo said in his homily that the ministry of Peter is rooted not in authority for its own sake, but in love that serves and unites.
“Peter is thus entrusted with the task of ‘loving more’ and giving his life for the flock,” he said. “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 successor of St. Peter, he said, “must shepherd the flock without ever yielding to the temptation to be an autocrat, lording it over those entrusted to him.” Instead, “he is called to serve the faith of his brothers and sisters, and to walk alongside them.”
Pope Leo also recalled the period of mourning following the death of Pope Francis, and he said that the conclave that followed the late pope’s death was “a moment of grace.”
“I was chosen, without any merit of my own, and now, with fear and trembling, I 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,” he said.
“With the light and the strength of the Holy Spirit, let us build a church founded on God’s love, a sign of unity, a missionary church that opens its arms to the world,” he said, calling for a church that “proclaims the word, allows itself to be made ‘restless’ by history and becomes a leaven of harmony for humanity.”
At the end of Mass, the pope called for prayers for regions afflicted by war: Gaza, Myanmar and Ukraine, which “finally awaits negotiations for a just and lasting peace.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was present for the Mass and was to have a private meeting with the pope later in the day, the Vatican press office said.
Immediately after the Mass, Pope Leo met with several government representatives including Vance and Rubio, as well as Peruvian President Dina Boluarte. The pope had spent more than 20 years in Peru as a missionary priest and bishop and has Peruvian citizenship.
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