Pope Leo XIV marked the last Sunday of his summer vacation by spending the day with dozens of homeless and needy people, as well as the church volunteers who help them, celebrating a special Mass and inviting them to a lakeside lunch of lasagne and roast veal at the Vatican.
Leo celebrated Mass at the Sanctuary of Santa Maria in Albano, which is located near the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, where he is vacationing.
The Mass was attended by about 110 people in the care of the local church charity Caritas, as well as volunteers who run the diocese's shelters, clinics and social services.
In his sermon, Leo praised the “fire of mercy” that unites them.
“I urge you not to differentiate between those who give help and those who receive it, between those who appear to give and those who appear to receive, between those who appear poor and those who feel they have something to offer in terms of time, skills and assistance,” he said.
He added that in the church everyone is poor and precious and everyone has equal dignity.
Leo, formerly known as Robert Prevost, spent much of his adult life working with the poor in Peru, first as an Augustinian missionary and then as a bishop.
Former parishioners and church officials say he significantly boosted the local charity Caritas, opening free lunch points and shelters for migrants and raising money to install oxygen machines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Later in the day, Leo was due to host lunch with guests at Borgo Laudato Si', the Vatican's environmental education centre located in the gardens of the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo.
The center takes its name from Pope Francis's landmark 2015 environmental encyclical, Laudato Si (Praise Be to You).
According to the Diocese of Albano, local caterers offered a menu that included lasagne, eggplant parmesan and roast veal. Dessert included fruit salad and a sweet named “Dolce Leone” in honor of the pope.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
