James O'Reilly
The second part of Pope Leo XIV’s first papal anniversary ended like this: with 50,000 people in Naples’ main square and a sea of hats with the Vatican colors—white and yellow.
NATS PAPAMOBILE
After getting out of the Popemobile, the Pope approached a group of handicapped and vulnerable people...
NATS ELDERLY
During the meeting with the faithful of Naples, the pope listened to two testimonies. One was from this young man who had lost his father. In 2023, two boys shot him at a gas station.
NATS ITALIAN
Holiness, the boys who shot me have been arrested today. But in my heart there is no hatred. I have never felt hatred toward them. From the very beginning, I felt that that act did not come only from them… but from the reality in which they grew up, from the conditions that shaped them.
And Pope Leo spoke about this, listing some of the realities experienced in Naples, which he described as the “pearl of the Mediterranean,” where beauty is mixed with wounds, poverty, and fears.
POPE LEO XIV
In many areas, one can see a true geography of inequality and poverty, fuelled by long-standing unresolved problems: income disparity, scarce job prospects, lack of adequate infrastructure and services, the pervasive presence of crime, the tragedy of unemployment, school dropout, and other situations that weigh heavily on the lives of many people.
The pope called for the local government to become involved, praising those who do their part to help their city and fellow citizens progress.
POPE LEO XIV
Often, they are true social heroes—women and men who devote themselves every day with dedication, sometimes simply by faithfully carrying out their duty without being seen, so that justice, truth, and beauty may find their way through the streets, institutions, and relationships.
At that very hour, 365 days earlier, white smoke appeared over the Vatican. Exactly a year later, Pope Leo XIV concluded his anniversary visit with the people of Naples.
