As pilgrims and representatives of the African continent celebrated Mass in St Peter’s Basilica yesterday, Pope Leo XIV made a surprise visit and invited everyone to live our faith as a sign of hope in our world. Source: Vatican News.
Mass was celebrated in the basilica for ambassadors of African nations who are accredited to the Holy See, along with several people taking part in the Jubilee pilgrimage.
At the end of the Mass, which came a day after the 62nd Africa Day, Pope Leo XIV made an unannounced appearance to greet the delegations and offer his encouragement.
In his off-the-cuff remarks, spoken in English, the Pope said the 2025 Holy Year “inspires us all and invites us all to look for hope, but also to be signs of hope.”
“How important it is that each and every baptised person feel himself or herself called by God to be a sign of hope in the world today,” added the Pope.
Faith gives Christians strength, he continued, noting that our faith enables us “to see the light of Jesus Christ in our lives and to understand how important it is to live our faith, not only on Sundays, not only during a pilgrimage, but each and every day”.
Pope Leo said faith allows us to be “filled with the hope that only Jesus Christ can give us”.
He expressed his hopes that “all of us together will continue to walk united as brothers and sisters to praise our God, to recognise that everything we have and everything we are is a gift from God, and to place those gifts at the service of others.”
The Pope then thanked the ambassadors and pilgrims for living their own faith in Jesus Christ.
FULL STORY
Pope: May every baptised Christian feel called to be a sign of hope in our world (By Devin Watkins, Vatican News)
