Pope Leo Xiv, the first American pope in history, vowed to work for unification Sunday to make Catholic a symbol of world peace, providing a message of love and communication at the inauguration mass at St. Peter’s Square, and then among thousands, presidents, patriarchy and princes.
Leo officially opened his purpose, and he performed his first pop car tour through Piazza, a series of pass-through rituals that have become synonymous with the Pope’s global and intermediary lottery draws. The 69-year-old Augustine preacher smiled and waved from behind the truck, but did not seem to stop kissing the baby and the crowd.
During the Mass, Leo seemed to have choked two powerful papal symbols, pallium wool stole on his shoulders, and the fisherman’s ring was on his fingers, as if leading the weight of responsibility of 1.4 billion powerful churches.
He turned his hand to look at the ring and sealed it, then held his hand in prayer. Security personnel were nervous as civil guards in neon uniforms transported pilgrims into the quadrants on the square and up and down the boulevard, a ceremony for rituals that blended ancient rituals, evocative symbols and a dose of modern celebrities.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance met Pope Francis before his death, and he paid homage to the Pope’s grave while in Rome late Saturday in honor of the Chicago-born Leo.
Theme of the Pope Leo
Leo said in his actions that he wanted to become a faithful servant through the two dimensions of love and unity, so that the church could become a force for world peace.
He said, I hope our first great aspiration is the United Church, which is a sign of unity and exchange, which becomes the leaf of a world of reconciliation. In this age, we still see too much discord, hatred, violence, prejudice, fear of differences and too much wounds caused by the economic paradigm that leverages the resources of the planet and marginalizes the poorest.
His appeal to solidarity is very important given the polarization of the Catholic Church in the United States and beyond. Francis’ radical 12 years of religious health, highlighting the poor and marginalized and dismissive care of the capitalist economic system, often alienating conservatives and traditionalists.
The Leo May 8 election comes in the beginning after a very quick 24-hour meeting, delighting conservative Catholics who seem to appreciate his discipline, traditional style and Augustine background, emphasizing the core truths of Catholic teachings.
Strict security and protocols
A strict diplomatic agreement decided the seating arrangements for his inaugural Mass, and both the United States and Peru were awarded front-row seats due to Leo’s dual citizenship.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined Marco Rubio, who was struggling with Francis over the Trump administration’s massive immigration deportation plan.
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte is about a dozen governors, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Russia is represented by the Minister of Culture Olga Liubimova.
The diplomatic agreement also sets out dress codes: while most people wear black, Charlene of Monaco and Letizia of Spain and Letizia of Spain wear a handful of Catholic queens and princesses in white in special privileges. Thirty dozen of other Christian churches in the world sent their own delegations, and the Jewish community had a delegation of 13 people, half of which were rabbis. Other representatives are responsible for Buddhist, Muslim, Zoroastrian, Hindus, Sikh and Jana delegations.
Americans are happy
Ethan Menning, 21, of Omaha, Nebraska, wrapped herself in an American flag and bought it at a truck station in Iowa to celebrate. Rome always felt like a Catholic home, he said, but now coming here and seeing one of our own on Peter’s throne…it almost made Jesus himself more accessible.
Kalen Hill, a pilgrim from the United States, arrived at St. Peter’s shortly after opening Sunday morning on Dawn and said he never expected the Americans to lead the 1.4 billion powerful church.
All Americans I want to say are emotional about it. “It’s really powerful for American Catholics who sometimes separate from the world’s church and brought it into this community through Pope Leo,” he said.
Signs of Leo’s priority
The two symbols given to the Leo Pope are pallium and the fisherman’s ring. pally draped on his shoulders, symbolizing the priest who carried his flock with the papal’s faithfulness. The ring became the official seal of Leo, and it returned to Jesus’ call to the apostle Peter to cast his fishing net.
Another symbolic moment of the masses is a representative ritual of obedience to Leo: Although all cardinals in the past vowed to obey the new pope, the recent papal installation involves representatives of cardinals, bishops, pastors, female priests, deacons, nuns, married couples and young people participating in this ceremony.
In the days since historical elections, Leo has outlined some of his key priorities as a pope. In his first foreign policy speech, he said that the three diplomatic pillars of the Holy See were peace, justice and truth. In his first major economics speech, he emphasized the sociology of the Catholic Church and the search for truth.
After the masses are over, Leo will provide the final blessing and then enter the cathedral to greet the cathedral where more than 150 formal delegations attended. The safety is tight, just like Francis did at his April 26 funeral, which attracted an estimated 250,000 people. Roman authorities plan to have another 250,000 on Sunday. The square and main boulevard lead to it, with two nearby squares and huge TV screens, and dozens of portable toilets are erected in the nearby park.
Gregory and Susan Hudak lived in the Chicago area for 40 years and found themselves in Rome after booking a trip in February, just a faint hope that might have a glimpse of the pope. Gary Hudak, a former altar boy wearing a Chicago Bear hat, said seeing a Chicago-born Leo saw a pop music pass in front of them, even better than watching Michael Jordan’s game.
Initially, my only hope to come here was to see the interior of Sistine Church. “He said. “I’m glad the meeting was over because I could see the interior of the Sistine Church. It is a long hope to see that the Pope has not arranged it. This is a treasure, very simple.
