On Sunday morning, May 18, a Mass for the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV will take place in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican. Although the Mass is no longer described as an "enthronement," it is full of rich symbolism. More than 200 political leaders from around the globe are expected to attend the Mass, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Britain's Prince Edward, the royals of Spain, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Argentine President Javier Milei, Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Global dignitaries and faith leaders from around the world will gather in Vatican City on Sunday as Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV presides over his inauguration Mass, which will officially mark the beginning of his ministry as the 267th pontiff. Robert Francis Prevost, a 69-year-old Augustinian missionary raised in south suburban Dolton, made history May 8 when he was elected as the first American-born pope in the Catholic Church’s 2,000-year history. The spiritual leader of some 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide, Pope Leo XIV began his term with a message of unity and bridge-building, urging prayer “for the whole Church, for peace in the world.”
Newly elected Pope Leo XIV will lead his inaugural mass Sunday — with tens of thousands expected to bear witness to the occasion, including Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The mass, which will get underway at 4 a.m. New York time, 10 a.m. local, in St. Peter’s Basilica and Square in Vatican City, will formally install the first pontiff from the United States as the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Roman Catholics. During the liturgy, the pope is set to be presented with a new “Ring of the Fisherman” — a gold signet ring designed specially for a newly elected pontiff, the Vatican Press Office said.
