We can’t catch a break with disappointments, and yesterday afternoon in St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, next to the papal altar, under Bernini’s baldachin, while thousands of faithful crossed the Holy Door for the Jubilee, a very serious incident occurred. A man climbed onto the altar and, to the astonishment of those present, took off his pants and underwear and stood there with his rear exposed. A true profanation of the holiest place in Christendom. We point out again the lack of minimum security in the Basilica. Spending a lot on concerts and drones and little on necessary things. The Vatican Gendarmerie and the Basilica’s security personnel intervened a few minutes later, but the outrage had already been committed. Let’s go with the day’s news, another one, complicated to present.
Pope Leo XIV’s audience with consecrated persons from around the world, discreet attendance, the hall was not full, the jubilee of the religious is passing as the most lackluster. He invited the religious and nuns “to reflect on an important theme for the Church in our time: synodality, encouraging them to remain faithful to the path that we are all following in this direction”. He quoted a 1964 speech by Pope Paul VI, who said: «How we would desire to enjoy this domestic dialogue in the fullness of faith, charity, and works! How intense and familiar we would desire it to be! How sensitive to all the truths, virtues, and realities of our doctrinal and spiritual heritage! How sincere and moving in its genuine spirituality! How willing to gather the multiple voices of the contemporary world! How capable of making Catholics truly good, wise, free, serene, and strong men!». The pontiff’s observations on synodality were a clearly Leonine reference to a key theme of his predecessor’s pontificate, a theme that observers believed would be buried with Pope Francis: “we want to be a synodal Church, a Church that journeys, a Church that always seeks peace, that always seeks charity, that always seeks to be close above all to those who suffer”.
The Jubilee of Marian Spirituality will be celebrated in Rome on Saturday, October 11, and Sunday, October 12, with approximately 100 countries represented. During the two days of the Jubilee, the original image of Our Lady of Fatima will be exceptionally present in Rome at the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina. This afternoon, the image will be carried in procession from Santa Maria in Traspontina to St. Peter’s Square for the recitation of the rosary. At the beginning of the prayer, the Pope will offer the Golden Rose to Our Lady of Fatima and the Sanctuary. Each decade of the Rosary will be accompanied by the reading of a passage from Chapter VIII of Lumen Gentium, the conciliar document that addresses the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the mystery of Christ and of the Church, to commemorate the anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council on October 11, 1962. Afterward, there will be Eucharistic adoration, imploring the gift of peace. On Sunday, October 12, the pilgrims will participate in the Mass presided over by the Pope in St. Peter’s Square.
October 11 is the anniversary of the opening of the Council and Pope Leo XIV calls the faithful to a Rosary for peace, a sign of hope for the world. From that assembly emerged documents that continue to be the subject of discussion within a Church that struggles to continue amid turbulent times. The liturgy with Sacrosanctum Concilium; the Church as a mystery of communion and People of God in Lumen Gentium; Scripture as the heart of Christian life in Dei Verbum; dialogue with the contemporary world, with its lights and wounds in Gaudium et Spes. The search for unity with other Christians inspires Unitatis Redintegratio and Nostra Aetate. The Council reminds us that every baptized person is called to holiness. The remembrance of the Council thus joins the prayer of the rosary with the Pope this afternoon.
Pope Leo has just published his first magisterial text for the entire Church, the Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te , deliberately addressed to “all Christians” on the theme of “love for the poor”. Originally planned as an encyclical by Pope Francis, it was substantially re-developed and promulgated as Leonine. Pope Leo XIII takes advantage of one of the best ideas of Pope Francis, quoted in paragraph 114: «The worst discrimination that the poor suffer is the lack of spiritual attention… Our preferential option for the poor must be translated above all into a privileged and preferential religious attention». Curiously, this quote comes from Francis’s first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium , from 2013, influenced by the preparatory work of Pope Benedict XVI before his resignation.
Today we have some impressions of the last text of Pope Francis promulgated by Pope Leo. It consists of five brief chapters: The Pope presents St. Francis of Assisi as a model and examines “the cry of the poor” as we find it today through the inequalities embedded in our society that we take for granted, especially when they affect vulnerable women and children, and including several ideological prejudices. In a second part God chooses the poor : Here, Leo debunks the prosperity gospel and explores Christ’s poverty as an important model, along with the emphasis on mercy toward the poor that we find throughout Sacred Scripture: «My brothers, what good is it to say you have faith if you do not have works?». We continue with a Church for the Poor : This is a review of the care for the poor, as exemplified by saints and religious communities throughout the centuries: feeding, educating, caring for the sick, freeing prisoners, protecting migrants, or even, as in the case of St. Teresa of Calcutta, serving the poorest of the poor. Leo also analyzes the growing awareness of the preferential option for the poor under the papacy of St. John Paul II.
It continues with a story that continues with a brief history of the development of the Church’s social doctrine. “We must continue to denounce the dictatorship of an economy that kills”. «The dignity of every human person must be respected today, not tomorrow, and the extreme poverty of all those to whom this dignity is denied must weigh constantly on our consciences”. And a constant challenge in the final section that links back to the initial one about the worst discrimination against the poor: the lack of spiritual attention. Leo also takes up the example of the Good Samaritan, who personally attended to those in need: «No Christian can consider the poor simply as a social problem; they are part of our ‘family’». Or, again, «For Christians, the poor are not a sociological category, but the ‘flesh’ of Christ himself. It is not enough to profess the doctrine of God’s Incarnation in general terms».
Some comments lament that opportunities have been missed to attack the denigration of the family by our culture and the defense of promiscuity and divorce, factors that contribute greatly to the poverty and despair of women and children, not to mention the lack of education that leads to drugs and other destructive habits, with the same results. But after all, Pope Leo placed special emphasis on the need for spiritual attention. To conclude, Leo quotes St. John Chrysostom: «Almsgiving is the wing of prayer. If you do not give wings to your prayer, it will hardly fly». «Through your work, your effort to change unjust social structures, or your simple and cordial gesture of closeness and support, the poor will understand that to each of them personally is directed the word of Jesus: «I have loved you» (Rev 3:9).
There are those very critical of Pope Leo XIV’s first document. «Conservative Catholics (especially in Italy and the United States) will have to accept it: Leo XVI is another ‘communist’ Pope. They hoped to have freed themselves from the ‘annoying’ catechesis of Francis on the poor, immigrants, the less fortunate, etc., so distant from the angels painted in the clouds». «But, it will be said, the document presented today was already being drafted by Francis, Czerny: «it is a document one hundred percent of Francis and one hundred percent of Leo». The expression «preferential option» for the poor is cited fourteen times, but, upon closer examination, only once is it a phrase from Francis. As highlighted by the English author Austen Ivereigh, it consists of words pronounced four times by Leo himself (once quoting St. Augustine), four times by the Latin American bishops of the three CELAM Assemblies (Medellín, Puebla, Aparecida), and three times by John Paul II. Konrad Krajewski, the almoner, was asked about whether he saw the risk that Pope Leo would be accused of being communist, as happened to Pope Francis: «If so, then we should also accuse Jesus». After all, it is well known that if you do nothing important, you won’t be attacked. Czerny explains that the text does not criticize or condemn anyone, but rather that in the world «there really are many problems, and people must read this text and understand its meaning». Czerny gave the example of drug trafficking: it is evident, he said, that it consists of many individual sins, but they are so intertwined and built that they create something omnipresent in the economy and politics.
Parolin intervened yesterday at the Pontifical Urbanian University in an academic commemorative event for the Council of China, held in Shanghai between May and June 1924, to initiate a process of decolonization of the Catholic Church in China. The goal was to form a church led by Chinese clergy and bishops, no longer missionaries, but local and «Chinese». «The Pope wants Chinese Catholics to love their country and be the best citizens». He reviewed the long history of relations between the Holy See and China, describing the current agreement on episcopal appointments as «a step on a path of discernment, woven with realism, patience, and trust».
Parolin wanted, first of all, to place the agreement with Beijing—signed in 2018 and renewed three times under Francis’s papacy—in a broader historical and ecclesial perspective, noting that «it is not a perfect instrument nor does it pretend to solve all problems», but rather a pastoral tool that must be evaluated over time. «Some may judge its results disappointing, but I believe it must be seen as a seed of hope, capable of bearing fruit in the proclamation of the Gospel, in communion with the universal Church, and in authentic Christian life». In reviewing the historical transitions that shaped the relationship between the Catholic Church and China, Parolin recalled the mission of Celso Costantini, the first apostolic delegate in the country, and the turning point represented by the 1924 Shanghai Council, which laid the foundations for a fully inculturated Chinese Church. However, «the events of the last century, which culminated in the Cultural Revolution, caused deep divisions in the Catholic community, leading to the practice of episcopal ordinations without papal mandate». «Pius XII, in the encyclical «Ad Apostolorum Principis» of 1958, while reiterating the gravity of illegitimate ordinations, never used the term «schism» and invited Chinese Catholics to love their homeland and respect its laws, as long as they are not contrary to the Christian faith». Parolin stated that the Catholic community in China «presents itself as a small flock fully integrated into the life of the nation, which does not feel foreign nor bearer of a foreign religion». Despite the difficulties and suffering, he added, «signs of vitality are emerging: crowded celebrations, works of charity, and missionary activities that testify to the desire to be useful to the homeland and faithful to the Gospel». The cardinal recalled Benedict XVI’s «Letter to Chinese Catholics» from 2007, a document that represented «the highest synthesis of pontifical magisterium on the subject» and provided the spiritual and theological framework in which the current provisional agreement with the People’s Republic of China matured. «The experimental agreement continues to advance: we consider it positive, as it has allowed the Holy See and China to reach a minimum consensus on the fundamental issue of bishop appointments». «Difficulties to address are not lacking», he added. «They require much patience and trust. Being a good Catholic in no way contradicts loyalty to the homeland nor collaboration for its construction and the well-being of society as a whole». Leo XIV sent his blessing to the faculty, students, and staff of the University, expressing his hope that the new academic year will be a time of growth in research, knowledge, and faith.
Müller with interview in Il Giornale . “The Church should not get involved in politics; it should think about Christians. Many want the Church to only talk about social and political issues. Of course, these are also mission topics, but its main mission is to preach the Gospel of salvation and eternal life for all men”. He was asked about the letters to Pope Leo XIV in protest against the so-called “LGBTQ+ Jubilee”: “The situation is very clear: the Holy Year and the Holy Door cannot be instrumentalized for an ideology of this kind. The Church, in the name of Jesus Christ, accepts all men and their problems, but God created man and woman, and only this marriage is the only possibility of couple coexistence. The Holy Door cannot be used for political purposes”. Regarding Pope Leo XIII’s adoption of Francis’s phrase “ Everyone, everyone, everyone ”, Müller warned against the misuse of the phrase as a moral license. «All men are called to encounter Jesus Christ, the only Savior of the world, but through a change of life. The problem is that many want to understand this «everyone, everyone, everyone» as the acceptance of a lifestyle contrary to the Christian lifestyle». Regarding liturgical disputes, Müller stated that the issue of the Latin Mass «cannot be resolved with authoritarianism, mediation is needed: both parties must come closer. A clear, theological reflection is needed, not just political». On the papacy: «The Pope, as Bishop of Rome, is not isolated like an autocrat, but has a college of cardinals that constitutes his senate». «The advice given by the cardinals is very important, not for their own interests, but to intellectually and morally support the Pope and his mission». “The Pope is not a decorative figure of public interest, he does not present himself according to the canons of a Hollywood star, but as a good shepherd, who gives his life for Christ’s sheep”.
There is an interview with Maria Corina Machado, Nobel Peace Prize winner, in La República: «The regime is ruthless. But my duty is to stay in Venezuela». It is a rehash of a September 2024 conversation after the elections in her country. Machado has asked Pope Leo XIV to intercede with the Caracas government to achieve the release of political prisoners in the country, including the Italian Alberto Trentini. «Today we raise our voice to demand a canonization without political prisoners». The canonization of the first two Venezuelan saints represents a unique opportunity to heal the wounds of political prisoners and allow their families to celebrate the event in freedom». Updated data as of September 15, 2025, from the NGO Foro Penal, indicate that in Venezuela there are 823 political prisoners detained, of which 89 are foreigners or with dual nationality.
And we end with something that seems trivial but helps us understand that past times were not so disastrous, ready and foolish, geniuses and fools exist in all eras. St. Peter’s Square is a very used stage and it’s complicated to see it in its splendor, empty, to understand what the great Bernini thought for this space. The gaze is directed toward the Basilica’s dome and the imposing space, but we rarely look at the pavement. Few know that the square houses a much less known treasure, hidden under the feet of visitors. It is a «secret clock » that is an integral part of Vatican history and the development of astronomical science, so much so that it is precisely during the solar time period— which this year returns to normal starting October 26— that it is displayed in its entirety. The shadow of the central obelisk marks the hours and times, the seasons and zodiac signs. In our days, we only think of ephemeral works that do not last beyond a generation, geniuses are geniuses, Bernini was one, and he was genius even in the pavement meant to be trodden.
«Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it».
Good reading.