Pope Leo XIV celebrates his first Mass at the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the seat of the Bishop of Rome, and greets his new diocesan family.
By Cecilia Mutual
VATICAN CITY — We must listen to others, and above all, to the voice of God.
That was the idea at the centre of Pope Leo XIV’s homily at Mass in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, where he celebrated Mass on Sunday evening.
Before heading to the Cathedral of Rome, the Holy Father stopped at Rome’s Capitoline Hill, the seat of the city’s civic and democratic administration, where he was greeted by the mayor of the city, Roberto Gualtieri.
The Pope thanked the Mayor and the civil authorities present for their warm welcome and expressed his hope that “Rome will always be distinguished by those values of humanity and civilization that draw their lifeblood from the Gospel.”
At the beginning of his homily at the Basilica of St. John Lateran, after greeting the cardinals, bishops, the “dear priests,” and the beloved faithful, the Pontiff emphasized that “Rome is the heir to a great history, grounded in the witness of Peter, of Paul, and of countless martyrs, and it has a unique mission, perfectly expressed by what is written on the façade of this cathedral: to be Mater ómnium Ecclesiarum, the Mother of all Churches.”
He then quoted Pope Francis, who often “invited us to reflect on the maternal dimension of the Church and on its defining traits: tenderness, readiness for sacrifice, and that capacity for listening which not only makes it possible to help, but often to anticipate needs and expectations before they are even expressed.”
“These are qualities we hope will continue to grow within the People of God everywhere — and here as well, in our great diocesan family: among the faithful, among the pastors, and, above all, within myself,” affirmed Leo XIV.
Listening to the voice of God
Drawing inspiration from the day’s readings—which recount how the early Christian community faced the challenge of opening up to the pagan world in order to proclaim the Gospel—the Holy Father emphasized that “throughout the entire process, the most important listening, which made everything else possible, was that of the voice of God. In this way, we are reminded that communion is built above all ‘on our knees,’ in prayer and in a continual commitment to conversion.”
“Only in that tension can each person feel within themselves the voice of the Spirit crying out ‘Abba, Father,’ and consequently hear and understand others as brothers and sisters.”
Guided by the Spirit
“The Gospel also reinforces this message by telling us that, in life’s decisions, we are not alone,” the Holy Father added.
The Spirit supports us and shows us the path to follow by “teaching” and “reminding” us of all that Jesus said.
First of all, the Pontiff explained, the Spirit teaches us the words of the Lord by engraving them deeply within us, according to the biblical image of the law no longer written on tablets of stone, but on our hearts—a gift that helps us grow until we are transformed into “a letter of Christ” for one another.
“And it’s truly like this: we are all the more capable of proclaiming the Gospel the more we allow ourselves to be conquered and transformed by Him, allowing the power of the Spirit to purify us in our innermost being, making our words simple and sincere, our desires honest and pure, and our actions generous.”
Here the other verb comes into play: “to remind,” affirmed the Holy Father. “That is, to once again turn the attention of the heart to what we have lived and learned, to penetrate more deeply into its meaning and savor its beauty.”
