The pontiff held his first meeting with the news media at the Vatican and called on reporters to choose “the path of communication in favor of peace.”

Pope Leo XIV conducted a private Mass at the tomb of St. Peter in the Vatican Grottoes, after which he prayed silently at the tombs of his predecessors. In his homily, he spoke about the Good Shepherd,

American Pope Leo XIV stunned the world in his first public address by boldly calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza—directly clashing with U.S. President Donald Trump's stance on the conflict. Speaking to over 100,