Pope Leo XIV prepared for the first Sunday public prayer of his pontificate with visits to two places carrying strong personal and institutional significance: an Augustinian Marian shrine outside Rome and the tomb of his predecessor, Pope Francis.
Leo, the former Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, was elected on May 8, 2025. On Sunday, May 11, he appeared at the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica to lead the Regina Caeli with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, marking his first Sunday as Bishop of Rome.
Leo XIV Prays at Pope Francis's Tomb
On Saturday, May 10, Pope Leo made his first trip outside the Vatican since his election. He traveled to the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, about 40 kilometers from Rome and closely associated with the Order of Saint Augustine, to which Leo belongs.
The visit reflected a longstanding personal connection. Before becoming pope, Prevost had visited the shrine repeatedly, including after his election as prior general of the Augustinians and, most recently before his papacy, in April 2024.
On his return journey, Leo stopped at Rome's Basilica of Saint Mary Major. According to Vatican News, he prayed before the tomb of Pope Francis and before the Marian icon Salus Populi Romani.
Francis, who died on April 21, 2025, had chosen Saint Mary Major as his burial place. Leo's visit came only two days after the conclave elected him as Francis's successor.
First Sunday Regina Caeli
At noon on May 11, Leo appeared from the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica for the Regina Caeli prayer. The Marian prayer is traditionally recited during the Easter season in place of the Angelus.
The date coincided with Good Shepherd Sunday and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Leo described the timing of his first Sunday as Bishop of Rome as a gift and focused his remarks on vocations, service and the need for communities to support people discerning religious life.
He also used the appearance to appeal for peace, referring to conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza and welcoming the ceasefire announced between India and Pakistan.
Continuity With Francis and the Choice of the Name Leo
A day earlier, during a meeting with the College of Cardinals, the new pope gave some of his clearest early indications about the direction of his pontificate. He highlighted missionary outreach, greater collegiality and synodality, care for marginalized people and dialogue with the contemporary world.
In his address to the cardinals, Leo said he felt called to continue along the path followed by the Church in the decades since the Second Vatican Council and emphasized several priorities associated with Francis's 2013 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium.
Leo also explained why he had chosen his papal name. He pointed particularly to Pope Leo XIII, whose 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed social questions arising during the first major industrial revolution.
The new pope drew a parallel with the present era, saying developments in artificial intelligence and another period of industrial transformation create new challenges involving human dignity, justice and labor. His comments placed those questions within the tradition of Catholic social teaching rather than presenting a detailed technology policy.
From Chicago and Peru to the Papacy
Born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago on September 14, 1955, Leo XIV became the first pope born in the United States and the first member of the Order of Saint Augustine elected to the papacy. The Vatican describes him as the 267th Bishop of Rome and, after Argentina-born Francis, the second Roman pontiff from the Americas.
Prevost spent a substantial part of his ministry in Peru. His work there included years as an Augustinian missionary and later service as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 until 2023. Pope Francis then brought him to Rome as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, and made him a cardinal in September 2023.
That background gave Leo extensive experience both in pastoral work in Latin America and in the Vatican office involved in the selection of bishops.
Formal Beginning of the Pontificate
The first Sunday Regina Caeli was an early public milestone rather than the formal inauguration of Leo's Petrine ministry. That ceremony followed on May 18, when he presided over Mass in St. Peter's Square.
During the Mass for the beginning of his pontificate, Leo received the pallium and the Fisherman's Ring, traditional symbols associated with the ministry of the Bishop of Rome.
His visits to Genazzano and Francis's tomb, his first Regina Caeli and his early remarks to the cardinals together offered an initial picture of the new pontificate: rooted in Leo's Augustinian background, attentive to the legacy of Francis and increasingly focused on how Catholic social teaching can address contemporary challenges.
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