On the eve of the feast of the Virgin of the Rosary, Pope Leo XIV presided over Vespers this Monday, October 6, at the Domus Australia, a pilgrims’ house located in the center of Rome that since 2011 has mainly welcomed Australian visitors and English speakers. The Pontiff centered his homily on the figure of Mary as a model of hope and fidelity to God’s will, and concluded with the blessing of the restored image of Our Lady of Pompeya, donated in the 19th century by the Blessed Bartolo Longo to the Marist Fathers.
A Marian devotion at the heart of the Jubilee Year
In his preaching, Leo XIV emphasized that Mary is the supreme example of hope: «The Incarnation took place first in the heart of Mary, before occurring in her womb», he affirmed, recalling how the Mother of God surrendered with total trust to the divine plan. “God never arrives late; we must learn to trust, even if it requires patience and perseverance. God’s time is always perfect”, he added.
The Pope explained that the hope lived by the Virgin was not limited to a passive attitude, but gave her strength and courage to dedicate herself entirely to the Gospel. In inviting the assembly to sing the Magnificat, the Holy Father pointed to Mary as the “true Daughter of Zion”, who rejoiced in God for his fidelity to the promises made to Abraham and his descendants.
The blessing of a historic image
The central moment of the celebration was the blessing of the restored image of Our Lady of Pompeya, an oil painting crowned with golden stars, which has been preserved for more than a century in the church of the Domus. This copy, linked to the charism of the Blessed Bartolo Longo, was given to the Marists at the end of the 19th century and restored shortly before the election of Leo XIV.
In his final message, the Pope entrusted to the Virgin of Pompeya the path of the Australian community in Rome, asking that “the Holy Spirit strengthen each one in their service to the Lord and the Church, so that it may bear abundant and lasting fruit”.
A place marked by the memory of the martyrs
The Domus Australia, inaugurated by Benedict XVI in 2011 after being acquired by the Archdiocese of Sydney with the support of other Australian dioceses, preserves a rich spiritual heritage. In the altar are kept relics of Saint Peter Chanel, protomartyr and patron of Oceania, as well as of Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop, the first Australian saint, of Saint Andrew Dung-Lac and companion martyrs, of Saint Maria Goretti, Saint Hugh of Lincoln and Saint Pius V.
The temple also holds a painting of the Vietnamese cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan, depicted celebrating Mass in prison during his years of imprisonment in Vietnam, as well as portraits of great witnesses of the faith such as Saint Thomas More, Saint John Henry Newman, Saint John Paul II and Saint Teresa of Calcutta.
Beyond its function as a lodging place, the Domus has consolidated itself as a space for liturgical and cultural life: it offers daily Mass in English, Eucharistic adoration at 17:00 and an intense program of sacred music.